The Battle of Fear and Love
by Unease
Summary: AU. Ferocious attacks by strange creatures have erupted all over Fiore with seemingly no motive. As Fairy Tail uncovers more information about a forgotten prophecy, they find that the fate of the world depends on one battle. Eventual ErLu (Erza/Lucy). Rated M for final chapter.
1. Destruction of Hargeon

**This is my first multi-chaptered story! I figured I would write most of it before posting, because I don't trust myself to avoid writer's block, and I know how frustrating that is for readers who are just getting into a story. I thought I would try my hand at something more serious. This story is also an AU fic – although everyone still has their magic abilities, some have different back-stories such as Lucy. She's also nineteen, like Erza. Reviews are always appreciated!**

**Somewhat inspired by the KoTN Oblivion plug-in, since I played it earlier and sparked the idea.**

**Disclaimer: Don't own Fairy Tail. **

* * *

"This is becoming quite a problem," Gran Doma stated to his Magic Council, "two large towns have been destroyed in the last month, with countless other attacks occurring."

"Even with Rune Knights stationed in them, may I add," a member chimed, "the only intelligence we have is that the enemy do not seem to be human."

"And what are the guilds doing to help?" the chairman asked, "Are they pulling their weight?"

"Yes," Org replied, cracking open one eye, "they are doing their best. They help the army fight off these... subhuman opponents. Though by the time they have finished, the town is usually reduced to nothing."

* * *

Smoke rose from the charred remains of what was once Hargeon Town. Houses had been burnt to cinders, injured citizens groaned in pain and ragged sheets covered the dead, most of whom were innocents and did not deserve their cruel end. The Fairy Tail attack regiment had been given a tip from Hibiki of Blue Pegasus that the town was in trouble, as they were the closest to it in that moment, but could not make it in time.

"Those bastards..." Natsu growled, filled with fury, fists tightly clenched by his sides.

"We were too late," Gray remarked, looking upon the scene of children crying and scrambling to find parents and people looting all they could from the pillaged town. Many had begun the journey to Magnolia for refuge and the safety of Fairy Tail's guild. Any town with a guild had a fighting chance against the enemy's army.

"There is still something we can do," Erza stated, kneeling in front of an injured man, who was sobbing loudly, "the refugees must be safely escorted to Magnolia. By themselves, they are lambs for the slaughter if Moros' footmen attack them again."

"Some of the injured won't make it to Magnolia," a blonde haired man, Laxus, chimed, "we should leave them behind, they are dead weight-"

"Quiet!" Erza commanded, rising suddenly, her sword pointed directly at his throat, "we help anyone in need. That was Fairy Tail's vow when these attacks started, and I will not abandon it."

Laxus merely scowled as she lowered her weapon, receiving many piercing glares from the other guild members.

"We should move now," Gildarts Clive said, acting as leader, "it will take a while to get to Magnolia on foot. If we get caught out at night, there'll be trouble. Split up and round up everyone you can find. Elfman, Juvia, Gajeel, Levy, go with the refugees that are leaving now. Keep them safe."

Gajeel grunted in protest, slamming his fist into his palm. "I should be here kicking ass, not being an escort."

Elfman placed a hand on his shoulder. "Protecting innocent people is to be a man."

"You'll probably have more enemies out there than here," Pantherlily commented, arms crossed, "these ones only attack at night."

This seemed to soothe Gajeel somewhat, and he relented. Following the others, he blended into the pulsing crowd.

Mirajane was ordered to stay at the rendezvous point, where she would take care of any citizens that were found. The remaining group split up into pairs for extra protection and scattered through the debris. Natsu and Happy, paired with Gray, shouted out into the empty streets.

"Hey! Is anyone there!?" Natsu called through cupped hands to amplify his voice. Happy mirrored his actions, whilst Gray was contented with listening for any replies, hands in pockets.

"Maybe everyone has gone." Happy suggested, the only reply to their calls being silence.

"Maybe," Natsu agreed, "but it'd get to me if I left someone behind that I could have saved."

"There's not much else to do anyway. Until we find a way to track the Void Crusaders' movements, we're sitting ducks." Gray added.

"This is bullshit," Said Natsu in reference to the attacks that had erupted over Fiore, with some reports suggesting that they were spreading further, "these guys don't play fair. They just appear out of nowhere and escape back through their portals when I come to beat 'em up!"

"Shut up for a minute," Gray interrupted, provoking a scowl from the pink haired boy, "do you hear that?"

As Natsu listened, he could hear it too. Faint sounds of what sounded like crying came from a large pile of debris.

"Whoa! Don't worry! I'm coming!" He yelled, already beginning to throw away pieces of stone and timber from the jagged pile without a second thought, Happy moving as many small pieces as he could. Gray looked at the huge pile, which seemed to once be a hotel.

"This is gonna take too long. Whoever is in there will suffocate before we can get to them." He said, nevertheless joining in.

"Not if I can help it." Natsu growled, pace increasing until he could hear the cries loud and clear. He fell back onto the floor, panting for breath and sweating profusely.

"Just looking at Natsu makes me tired." Happy quipped, feeling inadequate with his own effort.

Gray fumbled around in the sizeable hole Natsu had made. His hands scraped against something wooden. Contorting his shoulders into an inhuman position, he pressed his ear against it. He could hear the crying clearly.

"It's coming from this!" He declared, "it sounds like a child, too. We need to pull it out."

After squirming in the hole for a minute, Gray sighed in defeat. "Natsu, give me a hand. My shoulders are stuck."

His request was met with raucous laughter from the dragon slayer, who watched as Gray's legs flailed in anger. He complied eventually, tugging on Gray's leg until he was pulled out of the gap. The ice wizard stood up and brushed himself off.

"I'm gonna plug the gap with ice and then expand it. Then we can grab onto whatever that thing is and pull it out." Gray told, already in his Ice Make stance.

Natsu watched as ice filled the hole and slowly expanded it, bits of rock falling from the pile under the strain. Suddenly the ice shattered, leaving behind a roomier hole, big enough for both Natsu and Gray to crouch side by side, shoulders touching. Both boys managed to grip on to a groove in the wood.

"On the count of three!" Happy announced, "One.. two..."

Natsu and Gray braced themselves.

"Three!"

With a strained groan, they pulled as hard as they could, resulting in a loud crack as the panel of wood came away in their hands, sending them tumbling backwards.

"Ugh..." Gray moaned, rubbing his back, gasping when he saw a little face appear where the wood had been. Natsu made his way towards the child.

"N-no!" The little girl screamed, curling into a tight ball, "don't hurt me! The wing men will get me!"

"Wing men?" Gray repeated, knowing the child was talking about the Void Crusaders, their armour adorned with two large demonic wings protruding from the shoulder blades.

"We're here to help you," Happy said, "we're from Fairy Tail!"

The little face appeared once more. Natsu slowly made his way towards her, making sure he did not startle the child. He extended a dusty hand and watched as a tiny hand reached out and clutched it. The dirty face that emerged was simply decoration to two huge, innocent blue eyes. They scanned the dragon slayer, looking for any signs of dishonesty, and upon noticing the guild mark on his shoulder, threw herself at him for any scrap of comfort.

_'Another casualty of war...'_ Gray mused sadly, turning away from the scene, "lets get this one to Mira. We don't want her hurt in case we encounter something else."

* * *

After the remaining members of Fairy Tail had been recalled, approximately two hours before sunset, they began the walk to Magnolia. They had only been able to find a handful of survivors; the rest were either dead or had already left under the supervision of Gajeel and the others.

"Perhaps we should have someone scout ahead," Erza suggested, noticing the daylight fading faster than they were walking.

"If you're volunteering, then go ahead," Gildarts replied, carrying an injured woman in his arms.

_'Classic Gildarts.' _Happy thought, chuckling as he saw the risky placement of Gildarts' hands.

"Eh? What're you laughing at, Happy?" Natsu asked, carrying the little girl, Hina, on his shoulders, "I know what Hina's laughing at..."

He began to stumble around as the girl gripped onto his hair for balance, giggling wildly.

"Stop fooling around," Laxus demanded, "we could get attacked at any minute."

"Get the stick out from your ass, Laxus," Gildarts ordered, smiling, "let the kid have some fun. Her town has just been destroyed. Though you do have a point, we all should stay on our toes."

Erza took this chance to break forward from the group to check for hidden dangers, Laxus deciding to accompany her.

"They're all so happy. As if we aren't in the middle of a crisis." He commented, keeping a leisurely pace next to his fellow S-Class mage once they were quite a way ahead.

"It's our way of coping. Dwelling in negativity isn't good for the mind or body," Erza replied, armour clinking as she moved, "it seems our enemy would rather us fall into the darkness of our thoughts."

Both mages suddenly heard scuttling behind some bushes. Erza equipped her sword quickly, hacking at the plant until they entered a small clearing.

"Reveal yourself!" She commanded. Laxus swiftly attacked a tree with a bolt of lightning, a cry of pain erupting immediately afterwards.

"Oh look, a fallen angel. Well aren't you an ugly one?" Laxus noted sarcastically upon seeing the grotesque figure. Erza threw her sword, pinning a leathery wing against the burnt bark of the tree trunk. The creature simply grunted, trying to pull itself away whilst clutching at its stomach, punctured by an arrow. A stream of blood threaded through its long bony fingers fingers and down its black robes, pooling on the ground.

"Were you at Hargeon?" Erza asked, steel in her eyes.

"That's not important right now, what's done is done," Laxus interjected, "where is your base?"

The creature chuckled from beneath its grotesque helmet, a phlegmy, deep sound. It let out a scream of intense pain as Laxus drove his boot into the stomach wound.

"I'd never tell you. I live for my glorious master." It spat venomously, voice croaky and guttural, before muttering in a different, otherworldly language. Laxus and Erza assumed it was male.

"Glorious master?" Erza inquired, scanning the area for any of his comrades, "Is he around?"

"No. Lord Moros does not have time for these petty battles, he is working on his plan. His generals dictate our orders to best help our glorious master."

"How is it that you were left here? Get left behind by your _glorious master_?" Laxus asked, again applying pressure to the demon's wound.

"Hnng!" He uttered in pain, "My wing hurts. I can't get to the portals without both wings intact, you imbeciles."

"Looks like a clean cut," Erza said, ignoring the insult, noticing that the wing was cut in half, the other half lying a few feet away, "we should take him with us. He knows valuable information."

The demon began to laugh, but this action turned into a pathetic wheeze, "I'm not... going anywhere... with the enemy. When I die, I will join my glorious master in his halls forever. When you die, you'll live your worst nightmare."

His whole body suddenly convulsed violently, before falling limp against the tree once more. Laxus and Erza were shocked.

"Did he just kill himself?" Laxus wondered aloud, echoing Erza's own thoughts.

"Either way, we should take his body with us. It could give us some clues." She said. Laxus smirked.

"Well you're carrying him. I don't like getting shit on my hands."

Erza sighed before picking up the corpse, which was lighter than she expected considering the shoulders were covered in bulky armour.

"We have around an hour before night falls. Let's move."

* * *

The group made it back to Magnolia Town with no incidents occurring. As they settled into the guild hall, the injured of Hargeon Town safely at a hospital, they began to inspect the corpse Erza and Laxus had found.

"And you say he doesn't answer to Moros directly, but to a general?" Makarov asked, sat on the bar with his arms crossed.

"Considering the size of the Void Crusade army, this is no surprise," Erza replied, "with so many orchestrated attacks happening throughout Fiore, it's unlikely only one person would be plotting them all."

"He did mention something about Moros working on a plan, and that the attacks only help that plan." Laxus added, leaning against a pillar.

"Then the attacks aren't their main focus." Mirajane told, grimacing.

"If that ain't their main focus, I don't want to know what is," Natsu said in reply, "what could be bigger than destroying every town?"

"We need to know their aim," Makarov said, "perhaps the attacks make the land weaker, so they can invade at once and claim it. With what we've faced before though, that seems too easy. Why would they be biding their time? Are they playing with us?"

Levy removed the solid helmet from the dead soldier, her guildmates peering over in curiosity.

"Ugh!" They groaned as a vile smell hit them, along with an ugly sight. The demon had no nose and a full mouth of small jagged teeth. Its eyes were screwed up tightly, two beady, jet-black orbs barely visible.

"Definitely not human, then. I don't think magic could change a body this drastically." Freed commented, one of the members who had stayed behind to protect the guild on this particular expedition.

"Wings are not manly, just a way to be a coward." Elfman remarked.

"Somebody get this information to Hibiki so he can broadcast it to everyone." Erza ordered. Makarov nodded in agreement.

"You should be on your guard tonight," he advised, "we don't know how they will react once they find we have one of their bodies."


	2. Enemy Lines

**Having already written many future chapters, I can honestly say this is one of my least favourites, but no matter what I do with it it just ends up staying the same. **

**Disclaimer: Don't own Fairy Tail**

* * *

"It seems that the opposition, a guild named Fairy Tail, have possession over the body of one of our brothers. What shall we do, Thanatos?" A woman in a violet cloak stated, voice as smooth as silk.

"He didn't give much away, so it is fine." Thanatos replied, lifting an apathetic hand.

"I agree. Let the cats play their game with the mouse they have, they won't advance beyond that."

"Be careful you do not underestimate the opposition," the smooth voice chided, "that in itself is a weakness."

Thanatos chuckled, "I feel tempted to give them more clues. Watching humans scrabble like rats is amusing."

"Master Moros's plan cannot be inhibited in any way." The woman continued.

"Don't be too serious, Emi. Our enemy is a ragtag group of slapped together guilds, no better than mercenaries. We are the three that were chosen by Master to carry out his wishes, and he has granted us eternal power to do so. Heh. They do not stand a chance, no matter how much they resist. The descendants are dead, the world will fall to Moros." The third man, Rune, said confidently.

"Let's make this a little more fun," Thanatos suggested, a grin on his face, "we'll give Fairy Tail a hint for the next attack. Then we can watch them die alongside their precious human friends."

Emi merely sighed, "as you wish. I will not stop you. But remember, even we were human once."

* * *

_Smouldering fields, screaming, a thick suffocating fog, tortured cries, charred remains..._

Carla bolted upright from Wendy's blankets, sweat pouring down the Exceed's face. Wendy stirred next to her.

"C-Carla? What's wrong?" She asked, rubbing at one eye with the back of her hand.

"Meadowdell Town is next! They're going to attack there soon!" The Exceed replied, still gasping for breath. Wendy's heart rate increased as she felt fear grip her heart. Throwing her blankets aside, she rushed towards Erza's room in the Fairy Hills dormitory.

"Meadowdell, you say?" Erza parroted, bleary eyed upon being woken.

"That's what Carla's premonition told her. She hasn't been wrong yet!"

"You say that like it's in the realms of possibility..." Carla spoke.

"It's all we have to go on right now," Erza said, "we will get there as soon as we can to protect the town. I assume that since we have not been contacted by Hibiki, the attacks will be in the future, not tonight."

In the east, the sun began to rise. The message began to spread to other guilds.

"You are to go to Meadowdell immediately. Protect the town and its citizens, remember your duty. Try to bring back a live prisoner," Makarov commanded that morning, "I'm sending more of you this time, but some of you must remain here, the guild cannot be left completely open. Gildarts, pick your members."

Gildarts scrutinised his options carefully.

"Natsu, Gray, Erza, Laxus, Freed, Bickslow, Evergreen, Gajeel, Elfman, Mirajane, Wendy, Juvia," He listed, "I need your help this time."

Everyone chosen seemed content with being on the attack team, and those who weren't chosen, such as Alzack and Bisca (who held their daughter tightly), appeared to be relieved.

"Christina should be here at any moment to pick-"

"Erza! Beautiful parfum as usual!"

The woman flinched as she sensed a presence behind her, "Ichiya being Ichiya, as usual."

The Trimens appeared not long after, ushering the Fairy Tail team onto the bomber, but not before treating the girls to their immense charms.

"Hot towel?" Eve asked Cana, who simply rolled it up and slapped it in his face, much to her father's amusement.

Once the attack team were on the bomber, the remaining guild members watched as it flew into the distance, heading to the north-west of Fiore.

* * *

Arriving in Meadowdell a few hours before sundown, Natsu was the first off the bomber, hunched over as he knelt on solid ground once more.

"You're pathetic." Gajeel stated as he walked by him, gritting his teeth to keep his own sickness at bay. Natsu made to get to his feet.

"What did you- _uff_..." He began, unable to continue as he waited for the effects of motion sickness to subside. Gildarts dragged him to his feet by his scarf as the rest of the Fairy Tail and Blue Pegasus members emerged from the vehicle.

"Juvia!" A white-haired boy exclaimed, running towards them. The blue-haired girl immediately shrieked.

"I see Lamia Scale have arrived," Erza said, "and what of the others?"

"You were the last to arrive," Jura answered, "we are now waiting for the attacks to begin."

"I don't wanna wait!" Natsu piped up, fully recovered, "I want to fight these bastards now!"

"Patience, Natsu. We don't know fully what we're up against," Gildarts said, "be careful what you wish for."

"They could strike anywhere. We should split up like yesterday," Laxus suggested, "that way we can cover more of the town."

This strategy was agreed with by everyone, and they split into groups: Gildarts and Jura, Gray and Natsu, Juvia and Gajeel, the Raijinshuu and Laxus, Erza and Wendy. The Exceeds were to help how they could, forming an extra group.

"Don't underestimate any of these enemies," Erza advised everyone, "we've seen what they can do. Tell everyone to evacuate."

And on that final note, the groups departed in different directions.

* * *

Wendy shivered as the air became cold. They still had some time to kill, the sun suspended rebelliously in the sky. Laxus noticed the action and draped his coat around the girl as she sat on a rock at their designated point. Wendy smiled in thanks as she burrowed into the fur trim.

"You're a soft guy really, aren't you?" Erza teased, relishing in the irritation showing on his face.

"We can't have Wendy freeze to death. We need her to support us." He responded, giving a small smile to the sky dragon slayer, who blushed, glad to be included amongst the S-Class mages.

Shadowy, purple clouds began to swarm in the sky.

"Something's happening!" Erza shouted, equipping into her Lightning Empress armour to compliment Laxus' abilities. The man readied himself for battle, two balls of lightning encompassing his hands. Wendy shrieked, tempted to hide under the coat.

Suddenly, a huge black portal split the sky in half. Void Crusaders poured out of it, weapons ready. Poisoned arrows fell on the town, but were blocked by a magical barrier.

"Go... stop them!" Freed commanded, runes in place and struggling to hold them over the whole town, "They can still get through this barrier, but their projectiles can't!"

Bickslow and Evergreen needed no more prompting, as they rushed towards the enemies, prepared for battle. The creatures that did not go straight for the guild members began attacking the town instead, setting buildings on fire.

"Ugh," Gray grunted as a demon slammed straight into his ice wall, "these guys are relentless!"

"I can handle 'em!" Natsu claimed, his flame-covered foot colliding with the stomach of another creature.

"Ice Make... Lance!" Gray shouted, several lances breaking out from his hands and piercing through a number of enemies, black blood spraying over them like rain.

"It's no use! They keep falling!" Elfman exclaimed, beating the demons away like flies and crushing them under his beast fist. Mirajane too was overwhelmed with the numbers.

"Don't let them attack the town," Erza said, driving her spear through the neck of a demon who flew at her wildly with a dagger raised, "they're trying to beat us through numbers."

_'Fools... heh.' _A voice commented, audible to all.

"What is that?" Natsu asked aloud, surprised, a creature taking advantage and slamming into his stomach. The dragon slayer retorted with a furious flaming fist that crushed its head, even with the helm protecting it.

_'Get them, sons of Lord Moros. Succeed, lay down your life, and he shall reward you with ascension! Heh!'_

This seemed to increase the spirit behind the attacks, as they increased in frequency and ferocity.

"You're so annoying," Gildarts commented, disposing of the flying bodies with ease with his Crash magic, though this was messy, "usually I don't separate things into pieces, man or beast, but your killings and lack of humanity make you true monsters."

The portal closed. The determined bodies stopped streaming down. The rest who were already on the ground soon fell to the guild alliance and the Council's army.

"What is this?" Lyon asked, confused, "They've stopped?"

Sherry merely pointed upwards to where the portal had been.

A man floated above the battleground. Two large black wings spread out as he folded his arms. Two blunt horns, no more than nubs, protruded from his high forehead. His ears ended in sharp points, his skin the colour of ash. Red markings trailed from his cheekbones down his face.

"Hello, mercenaries." He greeted, sharp, pointed teeth visible as he smiled.

"Who's this freak?" Gajeel asked, Juvia shrugging in response.

"Please, call me Rune. You should thank me. It was I that gave your cat that beautiful premonition," the man revealed, causing Wendy to clutch Carla close to her chest, "I wanted to have fun with you. It's no fun when the cat cannot find the mouse. Heh."

"You call destroying people's towns _fun_?" Erza asked incredulously. The man chuckled.

"It can be. Especially when you are winning. Mortals like yourselves will never know the small price of a human life. You think it's everything."

"Because it is! Now get down here so I can kick your sorry ass!" Natsu growled, lighting his fists with flames.

"I don't tangle with trash. I'm afraid I have a job to do since you killed my brothers. Now I have to wait until father births more of them, so I must carry out their job myself."

"Who're you callin' trash?!" The fire dragon slayer spat back, "Roar of the Fire Dragon!"

A stream of flame came from his mouth towards the man, who simply put his hand in the flame and redirected it to the guilds.

"You idiot!" Gray shouted, his ice wall melting a little at the heat of the flame.

"I'd stay around longer and play, but I'm afraid I'm needed elsewhere. Goodbye, friends. Heh." He suddenly raised his arms, a dark aura surrounding him. A ball of energy grew on his hands, until it was as big as the Fairy Tail guild building itself.

"W-What is this?" Erza uttered, stunned.

"Everyone put your magic power together! We have to do something!" Hibiki cried, his voice echoed to the others through his telekinesis ability.

But despite their best efforts, their combined force was not enough to guard them completely from the attack. The dark force washed over them with ease, erasing all trace of consciousness.

* * *

**Tenrou never happened, but Bisca and Alzack are the same as they would be after the time skip. Just because.**


	3. Feelings and Fatalities

**Disclaimer: I don't own FT**

* * *

Erza groaned as she awoke. '_Am I dead?_'

All around her was white. Silent. No, not silent. The sound of birds chirping faded into her consciousness.

"They'll be okay. I'm surprised most even survived." A voice said faintly.

_'I'm awake? Why can't I move? Most survived? What about the rest?'_

"If you hadn't found them when you did, none of them would have survived." Another voice added – female this time.

Erza desperately wanted answers, but could not bring herself out of the white trance she was in. As she tried to claw her way to consciousness, she was dragged back into the darkness, falling back into total slumber.

Meanwhile, Ren Akatsuki held Sherry's lifeless hand, tears in his eyes. Lyon placed a comforting hand on his shoulder, looking at Ren's fiancée on the bed, no more than an empty vessel.

"She isn't gone," Lyon stated, "no one ever is. They stay to watch over us, to make sure we're okay."

"I'm sorry, Sherry. You... you didn't deserve this." Ren uttered, struggling with his words. He gave her a final kiss on the forehead before Lyon drew the white sheet over her body completely, he himself struggling with the loss.

Eve Tearm had been the other fatal casualty.

"Men!" Ichiya cried, Hibiki also with a deep sadness in his heart, "He was so young."

Many of the group were severely injured, and some, like Erza, still unconscious. The one person that could heal them all, Wendy Marvell, was also unconscious and therefore not able to help the situation.

"Where are we?" Elfman asked his sister upon awakening. Mirajane quickly pulled him into a hug, ignoring his startled cry of pain before she answered.

"A man named Jude Heartfilia rushed to Meadowdell once he heard the news, apparently he had business prospects there-"

"Not anymore, he doesn't." Gajeel interjected, arm in a sling, resulting in a few cold glares.

"-and he came across us. He brought us back to his estate to nurse us back to health."

"Did any of the town survive?" Gray asked. Mirajane looked back at him sadly. He immediately knew the answer.

"Even with all our might... the town was destroyed," Laxus commented, still in shock and sporting fresh scars over his body, "when it was the demons destroying the town there was at least something left... but that guy left nothing."

"There are so many questions," Pantherlily began, "we need to regroup to figure out the answers."

"How can we save towns when we couldn't even land a hit on him?" Gajeel asked, furious with the outcome.

"We leave it to the council for now until we recover." Laxus replied, knowing that was not a good long-term plan. Even the Rune Knights were depleted in numbers, especially after the Meadowdell incident. Many had not been able to protect themselves with enough energy.

Gildarts sat in a lone corner, lost in his thoughts. _'Master entrusted me with this task, and now two are dead... this is my fault.'_

"Quite a situation you got yourselves into," Jude Heartfilia spoke, standing in front of him, "but your actions were noble."

"Where's your wife and daughter?" Gildarts asked, noticing a picture on the wall and choosing to change the subject. Jude flinched.

"My wife is dead and my daughter ran away." He replied, looking away. Gildarts instantly wished he had never asked the question.

"I'm sorry. You don't have any idea where she's gone?" He continued sheepishly.

"She left with no more than a bag and the clothes on her back," Jude whispered, "if you have a daughter, don't let her go. Nothing compares to her love."

The words stung Gildarts as he thought of Cana.

"Wake up, Natsu!" Happy demanded, pulling on the dragon slayer's cheeks.

"That's not going to help things." Carla stated, looking worriedly at Wendy. The pink-haired boy began to stir. Happy poked his tongue out at the female Exceed, who simply scowled in response.

"I'll kick your ass, come down here and play fair!" Natsu shouted, springing to an upright position in the bed, "Eh? Where are we?"

As Mirajane explained the story to him, the Raijinshuu also awoke.

"I suppose it's a long shot, but do you know anything of the man that attacked Meadowdell? Or about any of the attacks?" Jura quizzed, shuffling through the sad atmosphere towards Jude, inhibited with an injured leg. Jude turned to him.

"I do not. But perhaps you can- no, never mind, that will never work."

"Tell us," Gildarts implored, "any information we can get would be helpful."

Jude sighed, "there is a woman who has _feelings_ about things, feelings so accurate that she was ostracised from her village. Perhaps she can shed some light. She lives in a hut on the eastern far side of the estate. I don't have the heart to kick her out... Lucy would go and stay with her from time to time. I, being a man of logic, do not believe a word she says, and she is slightly crazy. Don't go with high hopes.'

"Thank you." Gildarts said, rising and clasping the man's hand in both of his, "I'll see what she says."

"I'm coming too," Laxus spoke for the first time, rising from his place next to Wendy (who was again wrapped in his coat, her small fingers refusing to let go even in the realm of unconsciousness), feeling somewhat responsible for her pain.

The two men left the makeshift hospital ward, stepping into the foyer.

"Who knew, you do have a caring side." Gildarts jibed, elbowing Laxus in the ribs.

"Erza already gave me that one," He responded, "think of some new ones, old man. Wendy's like a sister, I want her to be okay. "

Gildarts pushed open the large doors, relishing in the fresh morning air that drifted through, tinged with the faint smell of fresh grass. Together, they made their way along the long stretch of grassland that surrounded the Heartfilia mansion, noting how it became progressively wilder as they advanced. Plants grew freely as the border turned into forest.

"Is this it?" Laxus asked once they arrived at a decrepit old pile of wood. Upon closer inspection, he realised that it was indeed a house, complete with a door made of rotting bark, "How can anyone live here?"

Gildarts stepped up to the door, knocking on it with a knuckle. This resulted in the door being blown to pieces. A shriek soon followed.

"My door!" An old woman cried, hunched over and scuttling towards them with the aid of a stick. She lifted it over her head and swung it at Gildarts.

"I'm sorry," He said, dodging the blow, "we just have some questions and were told that you may be able to answer them."

"Questions, mm? Well well, that changes everything. I love questions. Come in, let me pour tea." She mumbled, turning back into her house. The men had to duck to get through the door, and were far too tall for the tiny hut. The woman lifted a small china pot and began to pour into three matching mugs.

"Uh, how did you know we were coming?" Gildarts asked, noticing the amount of cups she had been prepared before their entrance.

"I had a feeling," the woman replied, "oh yes, a feeling that there was going to be visitors. Usually it's one, but now she's gone away..."

"You mean Lucy? Mr Heartfilia's daughter?" Gildarts questioned, "Has she been here recently?"

"No no, she doesn't have time for little old me now. Nobody does. I have a feeling you're here for something other than me, after all."

"What is your name?" Laxus inquired. The old woman set the tray with the teas on the table, seating herself in a large, out-of-place plush chair whilst the men settled on rotten tree stumps.

"You can call me Mary, everybody else does. I have a feeling that isn't my name, but now it is. Who knows?"

Laxus sighed, deciding to get straight to the point, "Can you tell us about the recent attacks? About Moros and a man called Rune?"

"Who has been attacked? I wasn't aware of this." Mary asked, causing the men's faces to drop, "I had a feeling, but I never knew for certain."

"We can't get anything from here," Laxus stated, standing up and banging his head on the low ceiling, further increasing his bad mood, "Let's go, Gildarts."

"This will be bigger than either of you can imagine," Mary started suddenly, after taking a sip of tea, "I have a feeling, yes... this will be a war for not just the land, but for light and goodness itself. Darkness has awoken."

The lightning dragon slayer sat back down, his interest piqued.

"Much you must learn alone, for I do not remember well what I have read in that library. My memory was the price. I have a feeling you will get by. Perhaps you can defeat the darkness, perhaps you can not. We will not know until the world is either engulfed in darkness or light. Every day my sanity leaves me... everything is fading... words on pages slip away like dust. Even with this tea to clear my mind, I'm fading. Tell me, do you feel that?" She asked, tears forming in her eyes.

"I can't say I do," Gildarts replied, patiently watching her, "who are you?"

"I cannot say. I do not know. Only glimpses. Pages. Shelves. Perhaps a librarian? I have a feeling someone remembers. Perhaps they don't." She answered.

"Who is Moros? Where is he hiding?"

"Moros... Moros is Moros. Nothing more, nothing less. You cannot find Moros; he will find you when the time is right."

"When the time is right? What does that mean?"

"I do not know. I do not know. Leave me now, I have a headache. Leave me, seek your answers elsewhere! Seek your answers in the cave near the rotted trees, where the rivers meet! **Leave!**'

Both men scrambled to their feet and out of the open door, spines tingling at the urgency in Mary's voice.

"What does she mean?" Laxus asked, walking back to the main building, "Where the rivers meet?"

"We need to look at a map," Gildarts said, _'I hope this gets us somewhere.'_


	4. The Relics of Lysander

**I was thinking about splitting this into two chapters, but it didn't feel right.**

**Disclaimer: Don't own FT**

* * *

When they returned to the others, they were pleased to find that both Erza and Wendy had woken up. They quickly recounted what they had heard from their encounter with the old woman. Gray hunted down a map from Jude Heartfilia and the members of Fairy Tail stood over it, thoughtful. The reinforcements from Blue Pegasus and Lamia Scale had returned to their respective guilds to break the bad news and bury their dead, Ren accompanying Lamia Scale first.

"Rotted trees... rivers meeting..." Erza pondered, looking for two blue lines interlocking but also surrounded by woodland.

"Is Rune gonna be there?" Natsu asked, already fired up.

"I don't think so," Gildarts replied, "she said the _answers_ would be in this cave. She couldn't give us any solid answers. She was on the edge of losing it, but we need anything we can get to stop these attacks."

"Hmm, that's strange," Mirajane interjected, pointing at a pool of blue covering where two rivers would have met, just north of the estate, "this is the only point where rivers meet that fits the description."

"Maybe the cave is under the lake?" Juvia suggested.

"Good thinking, Juvia," Gray said, smiling, making the blue-haired girl blush profusely.

"I will go find this cave," Erza decided, "even if it leads nowhere, at least we tried."

"Are you sure you should? You've just woken up." Pantherlily asked.

"Even though I've been unconscious, I'm still one of the healthiest here. Everyone else should go back to the guild to rest and tell them what's going on, Hibiki is understandably too upset to spread the word." She answered, standing up and equipping her armour over the bandages tightly wrapped around her stomach.

"Like hell I'm going back yet," Natsu said, standing next to her, "I'm not that beaten up either! I'm coming with you."

"Me too," Gray added, "it'll just be like old times going out on jobs."

"Then take Juvia," The water mage demanded, blushing once more, "I can get you all under the lake."

"Very well, but the rest of you return to the guild." Erza said resolutely.

"Alright Makarov," Gildarts joked, winking, "come on, we've outstayed our welcome here. Let's move."

As everyone departed to go home, shuffling in pain and groaning, a maid of the house handed them three large rucksacks full of food and tents to the four who stayed.

"Jude-sama wishes you the best on your journey," She told, bowing, "stay safe."

Jude watched from the window of his study as they made their way down the long path to their destination, allowing himself a small sad smile as he remembered his own daughter's departure.

–

After around two hours of non-stop walking, the group arrived at the lake they had spotted on the map.

"My feet hurt." Natsu whined, sitting on a rock and slinging the rucksack to one side, sweating under the midday sun.

"Mine too!" Happy added, sitting next to him.

"You've been flying, how can your feet hurt?" Gray asked, "You all complain too much."

"You want to rumble?!" Natsu growled, getting in Gray's face, the other boy fully ready to challenge the threat.

"**Stop**." Erza demanded, voice cold, making the two sit down and smile unconvincingly, fully apprehended.

"When are we going underwater?" Juvia asked, wanting to feel useful. Erza turned to her.

"Could you search for anything that might be of interest before we enter?" She requested, "I'd rather know that something is there before we go in."

Juvia agreed to the request and disappeared into the murky water. As her eyes adjusted, she could see that there was a staggering amount of dust from the bed of the lake swirling in the depths. Making her way to the bottom of the lake, she felt along the walls for any disturbances in the rock. Upon reaching the lake bed, she squinted, trying to make out any shapes through the dust that had gotten more ubiquitous.

A face suddenly appeared in front of her, making her heart churn painfully in her chest from morbid surprise. It did not take long for her to deduce that the man was dead, his eyes closed and mouth agape. His body still seemed relatively 'fresh'. Pushing down the urge to scream, she pushed his body aside and continued her search.

_'Juvia will be strong for Gray-sama and her friends!' _She thought, pushing through the water, '_if there was a man here, he must have been looking for something too.'_

Soon after, she found where the man must have floated from. A large mouth in the rock showed itself to her, darker than the rest of the rock. Juvia smiled, gliding up through the water with her hand trailing on the wall. When she broke the surface of the lake, she called out to her friends who were on the other side of the lake. Leaving the rucksacks, they ran around to meet her.

"Someone has been here," She told, holding the ledge, "the water has been disturbed, Juvia can feel it. The cave is on this wall."

"So something may be waiting for us." Erza said, folding her arms. Natsu grinned.

"Let's get down there and say hello." He added, fists clenched.

Juvia used her magic to give them bubbles to breathe in (minus Happy, who was to search the area in case the lake was not the main focus) before disappearing once more. Gray jumped in after her, followed by Natsu and finally by Erza. Kicking hard, they slowly submerged further and further, arms straining against the pressure of the water.

"Is this it?" Gray asked once they were at the black hole, trying to peer inside.

"This is all I could find, Gray-sama," Juvia said, "Juvia is sorry if this is not the right one."

"Alright!" Natsu said, swimming into the hole. The other three shouted in protest, but had no choice but to follow him as his form was engulfed by darkness. After a few meters, the cave suddenly became a dead end. Gray pointed upwards, noticing the surface of the water shimmering.

As they emerged, the bubbles disappeared, and they could breathe the musky air of the cavern they were in. Natsu opened a flame in his hand to illuminate the area as he tread water.

"So the cave continues out of water," Erza said, looking down the long corridor of rock, darkness at the end, "maybe this will lead somewhere after all."

Natsu was the first to pull himself out of the liquid, his clothes dripping onto the dusty floor, followed by the others. Juvia absorbed the water from their clothing to make walking more comfortable.

"You... you!" A voice called out, startling the group. Natsu made his flame bigger, and saw a man sat against the corner of the corridor, where it suddenly jutted right.

"Huh? Who are you?" He asked curiously, examining the man. He was wearing normal clothing and was very much human, indicating that he was not a Void minion.

"That's... not important. I'm a Shadow Bandit, that's all you need to know." He told, Erza noticing that he was clutching an arrow embedded in his stomach.

_'This seems familiar...' _She thought, remembering the demon she had seen with the same stomach wound.

"What do you want?" Gray asked, "Why are you here? I thought the Shadow Bandit guild only pillaged treasures, not rocks from old caves."

"Don't go any further! All my guild mates are dead now! I-it killed them all so easily!" The man uttered, fearful.

"What killed them? Was it a man with wings?" Gray said, thinking of Rune.

"No... no..." He continued, before dying. Erza picked up a piece of wood that laid next to him, the tip covered in oil.

"We have to continue, no matter what he says." She said, lighting the end in Natsu's flames, allowing the dragon slayer to conserve his energy.

They made their way further into the bowels of the caves, dead men and women (each bearing the Shadow Bandit insignia) littering the path, killed through different means. Some had arrows piercing vital organs; others were encased against the wall in sand. The sight chilled the Fairy Tail group, wondering who exactly they would be up against.

"What is _that_?" Juvia asked after they had descended lower and lower, eventually arriving at a sizeable cavern. The temperature had risen drastically, and the faces of the group were slick with moisture. There were no more bodies by this point. Erza too was dumbfounded as she looked at the huge metal door that stood in front of them, blocking the way forward, engraved with drawings depicting an event. Ancient letters were printed near the bottom.

"If only we had Levy." Gray lamented, tracing his fingers over the letters.

"If only we had Gajeel," Natsu countered, "he could eat the door for us."

"Why would this be down here?" Erza wondered aloud, checking for any signs of traps but unable to see any.

"I wanna see who this guy is!" Natsu announced, slamming his hands on the door, his friends wincing as the bang echoed, "It's... so... heavy!"

Erza, Gray and Juvia joined him in pushing, realising that there was no turning back at this point. Slowly, the door creaked open, the noise it made in doing so deafening. Once it was fully open, the four mages encountered something they never expected.

Behind the door was a huge chamber: the walls and floor were a dirty white, soiled by time's hand. The ceiling was incredibly high, the air silent. A large, glass chandelier burnt on the ceiling, lighting the room. Long, dark shadows filled the corners, dancing as the thousands of small candles in the chandelier flickered away.

Natsu stepped forward through the doorway, only for the ground to shift under his feet. He looked to his left, seeing four holes. He heard Gray shout 'a trap!' before he could comprehend what was happening. His thighs seemed frozen solid as his mind told him to move. Closing his eyes in anticipation, his heart raced, waiting for the critical moment. He felt a foot in his back, painfully propelling him forwards and out of danger. He landed with a loud thud on his stomach.

"Hnn!" Erza breathed, arms shaking from the strain they were under. She stood where Natsu had been, her Adamantine armour equipped, its twin shields at either side, warring against the eight sharp iron bars that attempted to pierce their prey. The bars began to crack in their rusty weak spots, trembling under pressure and shattering to pieces. The Requip mage fell to one knee, changing back into her usual armour, inhaling heavily.

"Always look out for traps," She managed between breaths, "places like this are full of them."

"It's a good job that one was old." Gray added, helping Erza to her feet and pressing forwards. As they entered the chamber itself, they saw that at the other end stood a pedestal, a large tapestry behind it. In the distance between them and the pedestal was an oval shaped stretch of marble, surrounded by stairs beneath the large chandelier.

"Who could have built this?" Juvia asked, voice echoing in the large space, "And why would they build it this far in the ground?"

"Look at the pedestal. Something is on it, but it's in a cage." Gray noted, beginning to walk down the stairs to get to the other side, the others following. Once they reached the flat stone at the bottom of the stairs, each of them felt a sense of dread.

"We're not alone." Juvia announced, shifting into a battle stance. Sand suddenly whipped up around them, forming a barrier and effectively trapping them.

"What the-" Gray started, before being caught off balance by a large bull, barely dodging a swing from its axe.

"Gray!" Natsu called, trying and failing to punch the bull in the stomach and receiving a blast of sand in his face.

Erza, arms still aching, barely managed to parry the axe attacks as the attention was turned on to her. The sand impaired her vision, and each attack was unpredictable.

"Water Slicer!" Juvia cried after pinpointing her enemy, a scythe of water cutting through the stream of sand aiming for her, hitting a target outside of the barrier. A grunt of pain was heard and the sandstorm subsided, revealing a tanned man with red and white hair panting heavily.

"Good work, Scorpio." A female voice praised, the form of the attacker disappearing.

"Who are you?" Erza asked, attempting to block another blow from the bull but this time partially failing, the sharp edge of the axe catching her cheek and tearing the flesh. She felt the warm trickle of blood drip down her face.

"How dare you hurt Erza, you bastard!" Natsu yelled, finally landing a blow on the bull's stomach with his Fire Dragon's Iron Fist attack.

"Ice Make Lance!" Gray roared, the spears landing the fatal blow, defeating the opponent for good as it too disappeared from the battlefield, utterly defeated.

A blonde girl quickly ran in front of the pedestal, blocking it with her body, arms outstretched. She was visibly exhausted, sweat dripping from her face.

"No matter what you do to me, I can't let you touch this!" She said, chest heaving, "It's more important than you know!"

"Huh? We didn't come to touch anything. We don't even know what this place is." Natsu replied, folding his arms. It seemed the girl was almost out of magical energy.

"You're not Shadow Bandits?" The girl asked, allowing herself to relax slightly, "They said they were sending reinforcements, so I thought..."

"We're from Fairy Tail," Natsu announced, rolling up his sleeve to show her the insignia and grinning, "we don't steal stuff like they do. I'm Natsu. These three are Gray, Juvia and Erza."

The girl descended the steps until she was stood in front of them. She looked at them cautiously.

"Fairy Tail... If you're not here to steal the fabled treasure, then why are you here?" She asked.

"We could ask the same of you." Erza replied, face stinging from the cut. The girl sighed tiredly.

"I'm here to conduct my research," She said, "it could help explain the recent attacks. Now what are you doing here? How did you find this cave?"

"An old woman sent us," Gray answered, stuffing his hands into his pockets, "she told us to find our answers about the attacks here."

"It seems she was right. Maybe you have the answers we're looking for." Erza stated.

"Then Mary sent you," Lucy deducted, smiling, "no one else knew what I was doing. Only she would know where I was. That means I can trust you."

"Your father doesn't know what you're doing either," Juvia commented, "he healed us after the attack at Meadowdell."

"I had to leave a long time ago... I couldn't tell him. It's a long story," Lucy said, "and I don't have time to get into it right now. I still haven't found how to get to the relic."

"The relic?" Natsu asked. Lucy nodded, motioning for the four to follow her up the stairs to the pedestal. They wrapped their fingers around the metal bars, looking at the treasure that laid within the cage.

"What are those?" Gray asked, observing the ivory-coloured circular shapes, composed of three plates, each engraved in ancient text like much of the room.

"Pauldrons," Erza replied, "to protect the shoulders. How do these relate to your research and the attacks?"

"That's another long story..." Lucy trailed, looking apologetic, "I'm afraid nothing is very simple."

"We have time," Natsu said, "besides, you can't get to the relic yet anyway. If you tell us what you know maybe we can help you get it."

"Maybe..." Lucy agreed hesitantly, "well this relic is one of Judoc Lysander's pieces of armour."

"Judoc Lysander?" Natsu asked, visibly confused, "Who is that?"

"A smith and philosopher of the ancient times. Legend has it that he had a year-long nightmare about the end of the world and recorded the details in a book, believing it to be a prophecy. He forged a suit of armour to repel what he allegedly called the 'ultimate' evil, imbued with magical properties. I've already recovered the boots and gauntlets and I think it's a type of lost magic, but I couldn't find any books on the subject." She explained.

"What happened to the book?" Gray asked. Lucy shrugged.

"No one knows. There is little information on this legend to start with. Maybe it just got lost," She suggested, "but it definitely exists. I have a small fragment of a page. I was lucky to find it so well preserved."

"Why have you been researching this legend? Why track down the pieces of the armour?" Erza urged with an insatiable need for answers, "How do they relate to the attacks?"

"I believe the attacks are foreshadowing Lysander's prophecy." Lucy confided.

"But if the prophecy predicts the end times then are we going to see the end of the world?" Juvia asked, worry and fear making her voice tremble.

"The fragment of his book that I have states that when the pillars crumble, the world shall fall. I didn't know what that meant until I did some more digging. Lysander's nephew stated in his own works that his uncle passed the armour down through his direct bloodline, so that they could look after it until the prophecy began. However, at some point they must have given up this duty, since the pieces have been sealed by extreme means for protection," Lucy said, waving a hand at the pauldrons, "but the main protection against the prophecy being fulfilled are the pillars. I believe that they are descendants of Judoc: if they wear the armour, they can fight inhibited against the face of evil itself."

"Then all we need to do is find the armour and a descendant." Erza calculated.

"That's where there is a problem," Lucy told, grimacing, "the last recorded descendant was killed almost twenty years ago."


	5. New Companion

**Disclaimer: I don't own FT**

* * *

The words ran through the Fairy Tail wizards like a knife.

"K-Killed?" Juvia stuttered. Lucy nodded solemnly.

"But then why search for the armour?" Gray asked, "If all Judoc Lysander's descendants are dead then the armour shouldn't serve any purpose."

"I was hoping to find a way to extract the magic from the relics. If I could do that, then maybe it could be used in a last ditch effort. It's hard to take in, but these guys are serious. We have to try everything," Lucy responded, looking once more at the pauldrons, "I think I found the answer to this puzzle before you arrived. There are five pressure plates hidden in the shadows. If you stand on them all at the same time, the bars should release. But if someone steps off one plate, they'll go back into position."

"So all we have to do is stand on the plates?" Natsu said, looking around the room to find one.

"I would have done it with my celestial spirits, but summoning five would take out most of my magic power. I was already tired from the Bandit guys, and then you came along and now I don't think I could summon one." The blonde stated, looking particularly unamused.

"Yeah, sorry about that," Gray blurted, scratching the back of his head nervously, "still, let us make it up to you. We'll help you now."

This made Lucy smile.

"But even with five of us, there are five plates. We still need someone to retrieve the pauldrons." Erza noted.

"I have an idea!" Natsu exclaimed, holding up the body of a dead Shadow Bandit, "We can use this guy!"

"Er... I'm pretty sure that's not how Lysander's descendants intended the plates to work, but if it gets the job done..." Lucy trailed, smiling awkwardly and wondering what sort of people she had become embroiled with.

Natsu pulled the body over to a pressure plate he had found. The weight of the man made the stone move downwards. One set of bars making up the cage retracted.

"I can't believe that worked." Lucy admitted.

"We will stand on the other plates," Erza said, smiling, "it's only right that you get the armour. You did all the work, after all."

Lucy blushed slightly at the acknowledgement before nodding. The members of Fairy Tail searched for a plate to stand on, and she watched as each set of bars disappeared with childish excitement. When Juvia finally stood on her plate, the pauldrons were free for the taking. Lucy held them in her gloved hands, treating them with the utmost delicacy.

"Here they are," She whispered, "I can feel the energy in them."

She passed them around the group so that they too could marvel at the sensation.

"I don't get it," Natsu spoke, handing the armour back to Lucy, "why can only Lysander's family wear the armour? Can't I wear it?"

"I'd guess that anybody could _wear_ it," Lucy answered, carefully wrapping them in cloth and storing them in her bag, "but you need to have Judoc's blood to master the armour and use its magic."

"We should get out of here and talk outside." Erza interrupted, feeling drowsy from the heat. The others agreed, and they made their way out of the cavern and back through the long winded passages. Juvia once again helped them with the water.

"Happy!" Natsu shouted as he sat on the lakeside. A faint 'aye sir!' could be heard from the distance as the blue cat flew back to the group, hovering next to the dragon slayer, "Meet Lucy. She's gonna help us kick some ass!"

Happy seemed content with this explanation, giving Natsu a high five. The sun was setting in the west, orange clouds drifting away.

"We should camp here tonight," Gray suggested, "going back to the guild at this time is unsafe, and we need the rest."

"Juvia is fine with this if she can share a tent with Gray-sama!" Juvia squealed, causing the ice mage to look uncomfortable.

"Would you like to stay with us tonight?" Erza asked Lucy politely, "Gray is right. Going anywhere now would be unsafe."

Looking at the group of friends, Lucy felt her heart fill with warmth.

"I'd love to... if you don't mind of course." She answered shyly, glad to be included.

"Nah, we're glad to have you here." Natsu grinned, slapping her on the back.

He started a fire on some wood he had gathered as the two tents were set up. Erza cleaned her wound with some of the water given to them by Jude, and accepted Lucy's offer to dress the cut, both of them settling down on the floor, resting comfortably against a log. Happy offered the spirit mage a fish, which she kindly refused.

"Sorry about the wound." Lucy said. Erza waved off her concern.

"Barely a scratch," She replied, "your skills are admirable. Do you travel alone?"

"Yes. Its just been me and my spirits for three years now. I've always been lonely, so the silence gets bearable after a while..." Lucy answered, "My father never gave me the chance to socialise except with the staff. It's one of the reasons why I left."

"Our lives are indebted to him, though. He saved us." Erza said. The blonde smiled.

"He's not a bad person, he just never had time for me. I'm glad he saved you. Time can change everyone."

"Why else did you leave home?" Gray inquired, sitting on the log rather than sitting against it. Lucy sighed, remembering the moment clearly.

_Flashback -_

"_Lucy! Come in child, you'll catch death out there in the rain!" An old woman babbled, bony fingers grasping a skinny wrist protruding from a cloak. A crack of thunder seemed to shake the earth itself._

"_Sorry I'm late," Lucy said, enjoying the warmth of the hut. She sat on a stump as the old woman settled into her pink polka dot chair, "I argued with my father again."_

"_Hm. That Jude Heartfilia needs to slow down and realise what he has. Putting business before your daughter is despicable," Mary asserted, taking a small sip of tea, "he hasn't been the same since your mother died, bless her soul. You have her face, you know. Lucky too, I should think. I have a feeling Jude isn't exactly the rosiest apple that fell from the tree, if you catch my meaning."_

_Lucy laughed awkwardly, "Of course."_

"_Are you strong, Lucy?" Mary asked, peering into innocent brown eyes with her own piercing blue ones, "Could you take on the world and win?"_

"_I'm only sixteen, Mary-sama," Lucy replied, wondering where exactly the conversation was going, "I don't think I could take on anyone and win."_

"_That attitude holds you back. Grow a spine. I have a feeling you're gonna need to, because there's something you need to do." The old woman said. Lucy remained silent, surprised._

"_The world will face a reckoning of the likes it has never seen before. You, child, must do all you can to stop it." Mary revealed. Lucy almost laughed at her._

"_A reckoning?" She echoed. Mary nodded._

"_Yes. Hell itself will stamp across the lands, draining the world of everything good. The plan is being set in motion, I have seen it in my dreams, I have a feeling. If you leave on the morrow there is a good chance that when it begins, humankind will be in a good position. You are special, Lucy. You will make the difference. I'm afraid my sanity is slipping every day, but I'll help you as much as I can."_

_Seeing the expression etched on Mary's face made Lucy's drain of all colour. Mary was a seer, her dreams and feelings never wrong. _

"_B-but I can't do all of this alone!" Lucy exclaimed, panic filling her heart._

"_How can you be alone when you have meh?" A voice asked. Lucy swivelled around._

"_C-Capricorn! Loke! All of you!" She called out in surprise, her celestial spirits stood in the hut, smiling confidently. _

"_These spirits will protect you on your quest, child. Never be afraid, I have a feeling that everything will be okay," Mary spoke quietly, "now let me tell you everything I can, beginning with Moros."_

_That night, Lucy packed her main belongings. The next morning, she was gone._

_End flashback -_

"You were pretty young then, huh?" Natsu stated, impressed, "We should fight one day!"

"F-fight?" Lucy stammered, looking confused.

"Where are your manners, Natsu?" Gray patronised, enraging the dragon slayer, "You have the brain of an animal."

Natsu's reply was to kick Gray off the log, initiating a fight. Juvia of course stood cheering Gray on.

"You'll get used to it. They always fight." Erza said in response to Lucy's bewilderment.

After Erza eventually broke up the fight, the topic shifted to sleeping arrangements.

"We have two tents," Gray told, opening one rucksack, "maybe we should split it by gender."

This suggestion visibly crushed Juvia. Erza, Lucy and Natsu however thought it was a sound idea, and so that was how they would sleep. As they waited for the sun to set, they settled around the fire and fell once more into friendly conversation.

"So... Fairy Tail... the strongest guild in Fiore," Lucy began, "you're all very close."

"We're family," Natsu stated, hooking his arms around Gray and Juvia's necks, "Fairy Tail is home to us."

"Only through teamwork did we manage to become the strongest guild," Erza added, "we all look out for each other. We share every joy and every pain."

Lucy simply smiled, trying to remember if she had ever felt such a bond as they felt for each other. They chatted for a while longer as darkness gradually passed over them.

"We should sleep now," Gray said, "we have a lot of walking to do tomorrow."

With those words, the tents were swiftly set up (with Natsu becoming increasingly frustrated as he struggled with the assembly) and 'goodnight's were uttered.

"Were you ever scared?" Juvia later asked as the three girls laid in their tent, Erza in the middle.

"Many times," Lucy admitted, "I was only young when I left. But at the same time, it taught me to be strong. My spirits were always there for me, but also taught me to be self-reliant. There are times where they can't help me, so I have to take care of things alone."

"You said you've already found the boots and gauntlets," Erza interrupted, "where did you find those?"

"I found the boots first after a lot of reading and searching two years ago. They were buried in a coffin with the skeleton of one of Lysander's great-great-grandchildren. It was guarded by old magic, but I managed to defeat the protective shade that attacked me. Then I took them."

"You were seventeen?" Juvia said.

"Yes. I grew up very quickly by myself."

"And the gauntlets?" Erza inquired. Lucy grimaced, the candlelight casting shadows on her face.

"With those I was less lucky. I managed to locate them through Mary's scattered ramblings. They were in a desecrated church hidden in the altar. I didn't realise a trap was set though. I triggered it and lost my four fingers to a sharp blade." She told, removing her left glove and showing them the metal prosthetics taking the place where fingers should have been.

"Looks like we both have a bit of us missing," Erza jested, "my right eye is artificial too."

"Juvia's missing piece is Gray-sama." Juvia mumbled sleepily before rolling over and closing her eyes. Lucy and Erza looked at the girl uncomfortably before deciding to retire too.

The candle was blown out.

–

Rays of sun penetrated the tent, the sound of birdsong in the air. The leaves on the trees that weren't rotten were brushing gently against each other, pushed by a warm breeze. The waves of the lake softly lapped against the edges.

_'A perfect day to be in the arms of your lover,' _Lucy thought, burrowing further into the warmth of the body pressed against her, _'wait, what?'_

Opening an eye and craning her neck, Lucy could just make out a flash of scarlet hair. Arms were wrapped tightly around her abdomen, a forehead buried in the crook of her shoulder. Lucy felt heat rise to her cheeks.

"Er, Erza?" She whispered, not wanting to wake up Juvia who was loudly snoring at the other end of the tent.

The girl in question did not move. The blonde put a hand over Erza's left forearm, shaking it gently. Erza mumbled something incomprehensible before opening her eyes. After a few seconds passed, the situation sank in.

"Lucy!" She exclaimed, jumping quickly to her feet, "I-I apologise!"

"It's okay." Lucy replied, leaning on her elbows.

"I-I should have told you I move around quite a bit when I sleep," Erza said, blushing furiously, "please, don't get the wrong impression, I'm not some sort of pervert that hops into people's bed for their own twisted desires-"

Lucy laughed, "It's fine, honestly. You're cute when you're all flustered."

Erza felt as though she could faint, her skin hot to the touch. _'C-cute?'_

A pillow suddenly thwacked her across the face.

"Juvia is not a morning person," A form huddled under the blankets muttered, "Juvia would prefer to be woken up at a later hour. Or by Gray-sama. Juvia is not picky."

"Hey!" Natsu called, his face peeking in from the zip opening of the tent entrance and startling all three inhabitants, "Rise and shine! I'm bored!"

"I've had this all morning," Gray stated as he cooked breakfast over the fire, voice weary, "it's like being a parent."

"You should give girls their privacy." Erza scolded as her foot slammed into Natsu's face, sending him flying away from the tent. Happy laughed as his lifelong companion complained loudly and rubbed his head.

–

Once the group had packed up, they discussed where they were to go next.

"We should go back to Magnolia and tell them what we've learnt." Erza suggested.

"What're you gonna do, Lucy?" Natsu asked curiously. Lucy thought for a moment.

"Try to find the next piece of the armour, I guess." She responded, though inside she was not quite happy with this choice. Neither were any of the Fairy Tail members.

"Nah, you should come with us," Natsu argued, placing a hand on her shoulder, "we need you and your brains."

"You've helped us a lot," Gray agreed, "and we could help you with everything. Having the whole of Fairy Tail behind you has got to be better than doing this alone."

"I think Levy could help with the reading," Juvia added with a smile, "you would get along."

"What say you, Lucy Heartfilia?" Erza asked, her own smile reassuring.

Lucy felt tears prick at her eyes. She let them fall down her face, dotting the floor below.

"I've never been part of a group before," She confided, gazing at their friendly faces, "I've never felt this welcome since my mother passed away. I'd love to go with you."

Natsu cheered as they engulfed her in a welcoming hug. Lucy accepted the embrace, feeling as though her luck had finally changed.

–


	6. Decisive Action

**Disclaimer: I don't own FT**

* * *

It took them five full days to get back to Magnolia, fortunately with no problems. Erza however made sure she was sleeping as far away from Lucy as possible, still ashamed from the first night. Upon entering the guild building, they were met with joyous greetings. Once introductions had been made, the Fairy Tail mages treated Lucy no differently as they would one of their own.

"Ah, Salamander. You made it back in one piece," Gajeel shot, smirking, "you still owe me a fight."

Erza looked around. "Where is Master? There have been important developments."

"Right here," Makarov replied, descending the steps from the S-Class floor, "there have been three more attacks since you've been gone. I hope these developments can help us."

"Three more?" Gray parroted, shocked.

"Bastards..." Natsu scowled, "They're speeding up whatever they're doing!"

"Lucy should explain what we know so far," Erza stated, "she can explain it much better than any of us."

As everyone's eyes shifted onto her expectantly, Lucy pushed down her nerves and told them everything she knew.

"Hm," Makarov said, "this still doesn't help with the current attacks. Who is our enemy? How can we attack him?"

"He's probably a zealot of Moros, from what I've heard. I can't tell you anything about his plans, only that it will end in the battle that Lysander prophesied. I've tried to stay away from the main towns that could be attacked. If I was killed, then everything would be lost. The armour was the main priority, the battle should happen one way or another." Lucy replied.

"But we should find a way to stop the attacks, or limit the damage," Mira said, "if there's a chance, we should take it!"

"I'd love to smash that guy's brain in," Gajeel added, slamming a fist into his palm.

"Lucy-san? I could read through any books that could help." Levy offered.

_'This must be Levy,' _Lucy thought, smiling, "Well, if you're offering."

She pulled out a large stack of thick tomes from her rucksack, each one dusty, pages yellowed, "This is some light reading I never managed to catch up on. Maybe they can help with the attack, they were taken from the Magic Library."

Levy almost regretted asking, taking the books in both arms and waddling to a quiet place to begin her reading. "How... did... you manage... to carry these?!"

"But the armours are equally as important to collect," Lucy reminded, "even though no heirs survive, maybe we could extract the magic and use it in the end battle. Prophecies can sometimes be vague."

Makarov held his chin as he mulled the information over.

"Perhaps the Council have a device that can do such things. I will see them as soon as I can. Listen up, kids!" He yelled, getting the attention of the guild, "You're splitting into two groups. One is gonna be focused on defeating Rune and closing his portals when he opens them. Natsu, Erza, Gray, Lucy, you're going to find the rest of the armour. The less people you have, the less feet you can tread on."

"He's speaking to you as though you were a part of the guild." Erza noted happily. Natsu laughed and drew the girls into a hug.

"Are your instructions clear?" Makarov asked, receiving a plethora of nods, "Then get out there! We have a job to do! Go to the libraries, churches, anywhere, find out as much as you can!"

The members raised their hands, index fingers and thumbs outstretched, a last moment of unity before they headed out.

–

"Found anything?" Gajeel asked, leaning against the table as he watched the blue-haired girl scan through one of the huge books.

"Only a few things." Levy responded, suddenly feeling a presence right behind her. Gajeel had placed his arms on the table either side of her, head peering over her shoulder, breath tickling her face. She blushed as words caught in her throat.

"Well?" He urged impatiently, "what are they?"

_'Such a meat-head,' _She thought, sighing, "This book talks briefly about the legend, but not much more than what Lucy-san already told us. But it does note how Lysander's descendants began disappearing after fifty generations, all killed through mysterious means. They were probably assassinated."

"Why?" Gajeel asked, confused.

"I don't know," Levy replied, "there's not enough information on this legend."

"But it's a prophecy that is real. It predicts the end, so why isn't there more?" He continued.

"Maybe someone, or something, was trying to cover it up," Levy said, pencil tapping against her lower lip in thought, "it's like someone tried to delete it from history. Lots of information might have been destroyed by that someone for that purpose."

"To make it easier to let Moros take over or whatever." Gajeel concluded.

"The books don't mention anything relating to the attacks, though," Levy said, disappointed, "why do they use demons to attack the towns? If Moros won the battle between light and dark, then surely it would be a waste of time?"

"Ugh, this stuff gets my head messed up," Gajeel complained, rubbing his forehead, "I'll leave this to the smart people. I think with my fists."

"I'll take that as a compliment." Levy mumbled as he left the room.

–

"We should see Mary-sama before we do anything else," Lucy said, "I haven't seen her for a long time, but I know she can help us."

"Are you going to see your father too?" Erza asked. Lucy shook her head sadly.

"Not this time. When this is over, I promise I'll do it."

"Then we should get it done as soon as possible." Gray spoke with a smirk, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"Let's go already," Natsu whined, bag packed already, "I wanna get back and kick Rune's ass."

"Such a simple mind." Gray chuckled, nevertheless following the pink-haired boy out of the guild building.

Once they arrived at the outskirts of the Heartfilia estate, it did not take Lucy long to locate the area where Gildarts and Laxus had been just days before.

"Ah, Mary. You've let the hut go a bit..." Lucy trailed, looking at the overgrown plants camouflaging the house, "or was this on purpose?"

"On purpose?" Natsu asked, hands threaded behind his head, "Why would she do that?"

"She knows too much." Lucy stated simply before knocking on the door. A groan could be heard before the door opened.

"You're friends of those two men, aren't you? I have a good feeling about that. You can tell them I fixed my door by myself, by the way, disrespectful little fleas-"

"Mary-sama, it's me. Lucy." Lucy interrupted, well aware of time being an issue. The old woman squinted and took a sip of tea.

"Oh Lucy! My, haven't you grown into a marvellous young woman! I didn't think I would see you again, thought maybe you'd been eaten by wolves or something. But I always had that feeling. Where are my manners? Come in, come in, all of you." Mary rambled, retreating back into her hut.

"We can't stay for long. I needed to know if you could tell us the location of the cuirass, greaves, helmet and shield." The celestial spirit mage asked quickly. The old woman nodded, taking another sip of tea.

"I understand. Your desperation, I can sense it. No need to be so worried, child. I'm in a strange moment of clarity right now, I can tell you where the cuirass and greaves are." She told.

"And the shield and helm?" Lucy pressed. Mary sighed.

"I'm afraid that they don't exist in this world." She revealed, looking at the youthful shocked faces.

"B-but how else are we meant to defeat Moros in the final battle?" Lucy asked, voice rising as she panicked, "We need all the relics! We need their collective magic!"

"Calm down, Lucy dear. You know I wouldn't send you on a meaningless quest. They exist. Just in another dimension."

"Like Edolas?" Happy chimed in after being unusually quiet, unsettled by the unfolding events. Mary nodded.

"Exactly like Edolas. But not Edolas. This dimension is linked to the armour pieces. If you collect them all, perhaps you will get a prize. I have a feeling it's a shield-shaped prize. Plus a helmet."

"So if we retrieve the cuirass and greaves, we should get the last pieces too?" Erza repeated. The old woman looked at her sharply.

"A skilled swordswoman, I see." Mary stated, eyes glazing over. Lucy placed a hand on her frail shoulder, lifting the tea to her lips.

"Please, Mary-sama. Tell us the two locations before you go again."

Mary managed to mark the two locations on a map before slipping away again into the vast realm of her mind. Lucy sighed sadly, kissing her cheek, leaving with her the armour pieces she had collected. Exiting the hut, the four gathered around the map.

"Both these locations aren't so far away," Erza observed, "maybe we should split up to get the pieces faster."

"I agree," Lucy said, "time is running short, we need these pieces. Then we can get them to the guild, and maybe if your Master has managed to convince the Council, we can extract the power."

"We'll get the greaves." Natsu decided, referring to himself and Gray.

"As you wish," Erza responded, "watch out for traps. Don't be too hasty. You're no use dead."

"Eh, you worry too much, Erza!" Natsu scolded playfully, grinning as he and Gray set off. The requip mage watched as their backs disappeared into the sunset.

"I guess we don't have the luxury of travelling only through the day." Lucy said, gazing at the orange sky.

"Unfortunately not," Erza conceded, "but I'm sure we can handle anything that comes at us."

"Definitely," Lucy grinned, flashing her full set of keys, "I won't let anything push me over."

"You've killed these demons before, haven't you? Laxus and I saw one outside Hargeon, killed in the same way some of the men in the cave had been killed." Erza said.

"You caught me," Lucy replied, holding her hands up, "Sagittarius has a mean shot."

–

As they arrived at the designated area on their map after a night's time of walking, Lucy and Erza observed their surroundings.

"This is a crypt," Lucy stated, walking to the doors. "Do you ever feel rude disturbing the dead?"

"Not if they're attacking me, which they usually are with the jobs I take," Erza replied, tracing her armoured fingers over a plaque on the wall. "Take a look at this, Lucy."

"The Lysander family crypt," Lucy muttered, "it's surprising this is still here. Maybe the legend not being well known was a blessing."

"If you didn't know where to look, you wouldn't find this," Erza added, referring to the location of the crypt. It was situated at the bottom of a deep ravine, hidden from view. "It looks like it's built into the cliff too."

Lucy went to the door once more, trying the brass handles only to find it was held shut by a chain.

"Well, we can always get past that," she grinned, key in hand. "Open, the Gate of the Giant Crab! Cancer!"

"What hairstyle do you desire, ebi?" the spirit asked upon summoning, scissors clipping together.

"Nothing today, Cancer," Lucy replied politely, "but I need you to cut through that chain."

"Not a problem, ebi." He assured, and in a flash the chain was chopped cleanly in several places, dropping from the handles to rest limply on the floor. Lucy dismissed him with a smile of thanks as he passed back through his gate.

"Here we go." Lucy announced, pulling the handles, the doors begrudgingly creaking open.

All they could see past the doors was darkness. Lucy took the first step into the shadows, unable to detect any traps. Candles suddenly illuminated the crypt.

"What's this?" Erza asked, seeing candles in alcoves accompanying skeletons burn away. "Some sort of automated magic?"

The requip mage entered the space, feeling an odd sense of relaxation. Upon hearing a distinct lack of footsteps accompanying her, she turned to face Lucy, whose face was white as a sheet.

"Are you okay?" Erza inquired, concerned. She could see Lucy's legs shaking.

"I-I've never been good with dead bodies and skeletons..." The celestial wizard admitted, able to see coffins and bones lining the walls, "I almost died from fear getting the boots out of that coffin, I had to get Loke to grab them."

"We all have our weaknesses," Erza consoled, holding out a hand to the girl, "but as long as you're with me, I won't let them get you."

Lucy blushed before taking the offered hand, finally able to get her quivering limbs moving. They held hands as they investigated the crypt, realising that it was far larger than either of them had envisaged.

"It's only right that the core piece of the armour is in the Lysander crypt." Erza said, stopping at a door at the end of the crypt. Lucy perked up.

"It's behind this door, I know it." She stated, finally letting go of Erza's hand and pressing both hers against the rotting wood.

"Since the main door didn't have much security, the cuirass should be heavily guarded." Erza warned, sword in hand. She signalled for Lucy to open the door.

The door opened to a small, mostly empty room lit by scented candles. The stone walls were white, the floor undamaged. At the back of the room stood an old mannequin, its wood sagging under the weight of an ivory cuirass, engraved with brown, decorative swirls. It seemed to glow.

"Wow," Lucy uttered, walking to the mannequin, "I never thought it would look like this."

She suddenly fell backwards with a thud as she neared the armour.

"Lucy!" Erza called, running to her side, "What's wrong?"

"There's some sort of... barrier on the armour," Lucy responded, rubbing her back which had taken the fall, "see for yourself."

Erza cautiously approached the cuirass, arm outstretched. She was closer than Lucy had gotten, and did not feel any different than she had before.

"Why isn't it affecting me?" She asked, confused, as her fingers touched the front of the cuirass.

"Maybe it's your magic protecting you," Lucy suggested, "or maybe whoever sealed this didn't like celestial spirit mages. Just grab it and let's go."

Erza complied, lifting the armour from the mannequin carefully and holding it in her arms. Ancient letters seemed to glow within the ivory panels. Whispers suddenly filled the silence of the crypt.

"E-E-Erza!" Lucy stammered, pointing at the open doorway. "D-dead people!"

Sure enough, every skeleton and partially preserved body they had seen on their trek through the catacombs seemed to be marching towards them. Tears streamed down Lucy's face as she crawled to the back of the room.

"The enchantment must have been lifted when I took the cuirass from the mannequin. It must have also triggered the Lysander bodies to attack. I knew everything seemed too simple." Erza muttered, giving Lucy the armour to hold, equipping her Heaven's Wheel armour.

"D-Dead people..." Lucy repeated, stiff with fear, crushing herself into the corner.

"Looks like I'm dealing with you alone," Erza said to the marching bodies, "so be it. Blumenblatt!"

Two swords in hand, she charged into the mass of decay, slicing quickly as hands tried to grab her. The enemies she missed were cleared up by the many swords following her. The amount of attacking bones did not seem to decrease. A sword suddenly clanged against her own two, a mummified body donned in Rune Knight armour scowling fiercely at her. The eye sockets glowed an eerie blue, wiry hair still attached to whatever skin was left on the brown skull.

"Perhaps an opponent to get serious with," Erza taunted, "come."

The body needed no more encouragement as it lifted its greatsword and swung it at her once more. Erza parried the attack with ease before she responded with a swipe at an open leg. The former Rune Knight managed to step backwards just in time, effectively avoiding the tip of her sword.

The other walking dead saw that Erza was distracted and took advantage, stumbling towards the huddled form of the blonde girl. The red-haired mage looked at the situation, as she dodged another clumsy swing of the greatsword.

"Lucy! Overcome your fear and they can't hurt you!" She cried, the moment of distraction causing her to be smashed in the head by the butt of the greatsword, ears ringing, falling to her knees.

_'Overcome my fear... overcome my fear... she just took a blow to the head just to say that... to encourage me,' _Lucy thought, gripping her keys tightly in a clenched fist, _'so I'd better say thanks.'_

"Gate of the Lion! Gate of the Bull! Open!" She ordered, finding the inner strength to stand firmly, pushing down her fear. Two forms emerged, already prepared to attack.

"Long time no see, Lucy," A suited man said, hands covered in orbs of light, "I see there is no time for small talk."

"I will protect you and your beautiful body, Lucy-san!" Taurus roared, axe cutting through the dead with ease.

The two spirits made quick work of the corpses as Erza's battle continued. Shaking her head to eliminate the ringing and smiling confidently, Erza managed to stand.

"I'm tired of being here now," She told, charging forward, "it's time for you to rest again."

Slashing her sword in a pentagram shape, the body fell to pieces in front of her, skull rolling away with its eyes extinguished. Requipping back into her normal armour, Erza made her way to where Lucy was.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Lucy replied, picking up the cuirass with difficulty, "this is heavy... how is your head?"

Erza touched the sensitive lump on her cheekbone, "It's nothing, I shouldn't have let my guard down."

The ceiling above them began to rumble loudly. Erza stored the cuirass in her pocket dimension, grabbed Lucy's wrist and began to run.

"This place is going to cave in!" She shouted over the noise, almost tripping over fallen rocks. Lucy looked back and saw large rocks crush the room where they had been just seconds earlier. Darkness started to catch up with them as candles extinguished themselves. A large piece of stone fell from the cracking ceiling and smashed against Lucy's knee. She screamed in pain as she fell down, dragging Erza to a halt. She tried to stand up bravely, but the injured knee buckled under even the smallest amount of weight.

"Go, Erza! I don't want you to die in here because of me." Lucy said, resigning to her fate.

"I don't know what you are talking about," Erza shot back through gritted teeth, "comrades do not leave each other to die. We either live or die together, and nobody is dying today!"

Erza whisked the girl on to her back, Lucy gripping around her neck tightly as each step jerked her knee, causing agony every second. Rocks were slashed apart by a sword to clear the way as they eventually neared the entrance. With a determined growl, Erza lunged for the doors, slamming her shoulder into them and barrelling into the late morning air. The momentum sent her and Lucy tumbling as the requip mage stumbled under her own speed on the grass. Behind them, the crypt disappeared under tonnes of rock as the cliff face collapsed on top of it, erasing all signs of its existence.

Lucy opened her eyes and saw brown ones staring right back at her. Her cheeks flushed as she saw how they were laid on the grass, herself on top of Erza. Her heart thudded painfully from both the adrenaline pumping through her body and emotional realisation.

"T-thank you for saving me." She stuttered, the pain suddenly returning to her knee. She gasped and rolled on to her back. Erza sat up, observing the badly swollen leg.

"We need to get back to the guild. Wendy could heal this for you," She told, "but at the same time you need to rest as much as you can. You haven't slept for quite a while."

"B-but we don't have time to rest. And you haven't slept either." Lucy started, attempting to stand up once more, only to be pushed down gently by Erza.

"Don't worry. Both of us will rest for a few minutes. I will wake you up before we need to go." Erza said, laying down once more. Lucy seemed satisfied with this compromise, and allowed herself to relax despite her throbbing leg.

_'I won't fall asleep, I'll just have... a little... break...' _She thought as she drifted into unconsciousness. Once Erza heard her breathing even out, she stood up, slinging the rucksack over her shoulder and picking up the blonde. She carried her bridal style all the way back to Fairy Tail, at the same time wondering why her heart wouldn't stop beating so loudly.

* * *

**I think we can all relate to Lucy's fear of the walking dead. Yikes.**


	7. New Hope

**Disclaimer: I don't own FT.**

* * *

"And you trust the word of a little girl?" Gran Doma asked languidly, making the idea appear ridiculous. Makarov fought the urge to snarl at the chairman.

"What other leads do you have?" He shot back, "By the time you come up with a solution, there will be nothing left of Fiore for you to govern."

"I suggest we give them Soutirer," Org interrupted, "we have no reason to distrust Fairy Tail. Especially not at a time like this."

The other Council members, easily swayed, agreed with this course of action. Gran Doma furrowed his brow, mouth twitching beneath his long beard. Seeing he was defeated, he stood up, looking down at the short guild master.

"If you dare use this magic to achieve any other means than the one you have told the Council today, we will not hesitate to strike both you and your guild down." The chairman boomed, slamming his staff on the floor. Makarov merely nodded in understanding, following two Council employees out of the hall to wherever the extraction magic, Soutirer, was stored.

* * *

Lucy yawned and stretched as sunlight streamed through the windows.

"How are you feeling, Lucy-san?" Wendy asked, prodding the girl's knee. Lucy furrowed her eyebrows in confusion.

"It doesn't hurt any more," She noted, "but I hurt it really bad back at the crypt."

"Wendy uses healing magic to help her friends," Carla stated proudly, "impressive, don't you think?"

Lucy grinned widely. "Very! Thank you, Wendy."

The sky dragon slayer smiled in response.

"How did I get back here? I thought Erza said-" Lucy began, before the pieces fell into place, "she brought me back, didn't she? Even though she said she would rest too... why would she do that for me?"

"Erza-san cares deeply for her friends," Wendy responded, "she'd sooner give up her own life than see us hurt. She was worried for you, so came back here."

Lucy smiled, touched at the perseverance of the young woman.

"Good news," Levy announced as she entered the room, "Master Makarov has returned with Soutirer, the magic extraction spell."

"It feels like things are turning around," Lucy replied, "have Natsu and Gray come back?"

"Not yet," Levy said, "but don't worry! They can handle themselves. I'm sure they are fine."

"You're probably right." Lucy admitted, remembering the carefree spirit of Natsu and the laid-back demeanour of Gray. Both were powerful mages in their own right.

"I also think Meadowdell is going to be the last attack from the enemy," Levy stated, voice serious, "in one of your books there were riddles written in symbols. After many hours, I managed to solve them all, and they gave descriptions matching the attacked cities. For example, Meadowdell was described as _'the green grass where the sun shines eternally'_, and Hargeon as _'the edge of the blue world'_, which is the sea. Those were the final riddles."

"The book you read... it didn't have a title, did it?" Lucy asked, already knowing the answer.

"No, and it has some sort of dark magic in it. Where did you get it?" Levy said. Lucy sighed.

"Mary-sama told me to take it. I didn't know how to decipher the symbols, but I always knew there was something weird about the book."

"I haven't finished it yet," Levy told, "it makes me tired when I read it. I think it will help us get more answers about Moros, though. It's like being in the mind of the enemy."

"We're back! Where's Lucy?" A voice shouted from the main hall. Lucy smiled when she heard an enthusiastic 'aye!' follow the declaration. The dragon slayer poked his head around the door, covered in cuts and bruises.

"Natsu! What happened?" Lucy demanded, shocked at his appearance, clothes ripped and dirty. The boy grinned cheerfully.

"Demons attacked us, but I took care of 'em!" He replied confidently.

"You say that like I had nothing to do with it, idiot," Gray mumbled, himself in a similar state as Natsu, "it looks like they finally caught onto the importance of the armour. But it's too late for them, right? Since you're here, it means you have the cuirass."

Lucy nodded, "And whilst we were gone Levy found out the attacks will stop now. That means the final battle will be soon."

"Awesome," Natsu said, "I knew I'd be back in time for the good stuff."

"You're not going anywhere in that state," Master Makarov stated, arms folded as he too entered the room. The dragon slayer slumped his shoulders, disappointed as Wendy began to heal him, "I came to ask Lucy if she felt ready to activate Soutirer. Laxus and Gildarts retrieved the other armour pieces from Mary already."

Lucy stood up from the bed, testing her knee to make sure it was fully functional, "I'm ready."

* * *

With the armour piled in the middle of the guild hall, Lucy read the scroll that contained Soutirer.

"It seems that all we do is chant the incantation and then aim for the armours. Then, the magic from the relics should transfer to the scroll. We'll have to make do with the pieces we have, since no shield or helmet has appeared." She explained, "where's Erza?"

"Sleeping," Gildarts replied, "it has been a day since she got back. You must've really needed your sleep."

"No, I'm here." The mage in question said, emerging just in time through the front doors looking refreshed.

"Good," Makarov said, "now that all of us are here, let's collect this magic and then think of a plan."

"Are you all ready?" Lucy asked, seeing the members of Fairy Tail nod in affirmation. They began the incantation, voices murmuring together as one rhythm. A beam of blinding light shot out from the scroll, covering the armour pieces, the building's foundations shaking under the energy. The beam suddenly broke, spell shattering, the scroll burnt to cinders in her hands.

"W-what?!" Lucy stammered in disbelief.

"Is that meant to happen?" Happy asked worriedly.

"No! It was meant to absorb the magic, but the spell just... stopped! It was destroyed!" She said, sinking to her knees in resignation, "It didn't work..."

"So now there is no way of winning the final battle?" Juvia inquired, eyes watering.

"C-crying isn't manly, but..." Elfman started, holding Mirajane's hand tightly.

"I'm sorry," Lucy whispered, "I let you all feel hope, and it was all for nothing."

"It's okay, Lucy-san!" Wendy comforted, "At least we tried."

"I didn't know this guild was full of teary-eyed losers," Natsu began, shaking in rage, "even if it's the end, I'd rather go out fighting than crying about it."

"If there's one thing we can do till the end, it is be strong for the sake of each other," Erza added, standing in front of Lucy. "This isn't your fault. No one could have predicted this."

"The best we can do now is show Moros what happens when you mess with Fairy Tail," Gray concluded.

The blonde looked at the determined faces of Natsu, Erza and Gray, feeling determination fill her heart too. Carla suddenly keeled over.

"Carla!" Wendy yelled in concern, knowing the Exceed was having a premonition.

"The old woman... she's going to be under attack very soon!"

"M-Mary-sama?" Lucy said, eyes wide open, "Mary-sama!"

She took off for the door without a second thought. Erza and Natsu immediately followed her.

"Go with them Gildarts, Laxus, Gajeel," Makarov commanded, "whatever is there will need putting down. For good."

The three nodded before running after Lucy.

* * *

"You again!" Natsu roared, spotting Rune floating in the afternoon sky.

"It's not dark yet... why are you here now?" Gildarts asked. Rune laughed.

"When it's dark the cattle are easily scared," the demon said, "I love their fear. It's so... pathetic. I almost pity them."

"You disgust me." Erza spat, equipping her Black Wing armour.

"I've watched you all scramble for answers. Admittedly, my brothers and I overlooked one important detail with the armour. Luckily for us though, you failed with extracting the magic. Looks like Judoc's caution with his magic will work against him now. His prophecy is so close to being fulfilled, in the worst way you could imagine. Heh," he told.

"But why attack towns then? What's the point if you'd win anyway?" Gajeel said, unfazed by the demon's boasts.

"Everything in the world needs energy to power it. The fear created by the attacks is siphoned by Master Moros. Soon, he will have a true form and will come to Earthland for the final battle, which of course he will win, since there are no heirs to stop him," Rune explained, "I'm surprised you didn't work it out sooner. You have the Morossian Account from Master's own library, after all. I suppose I've just ruined the ending for you."

"The dark magic that's tiring Levy..." Gajeel uttered, "it's from you damn people!"

"This woman has caused too many problems for us. At first, I thought it would be fun to play, heh. But now, you're getting too close," Rune spoke, a ball of dark energy appearing in a clawed hand, throwing it at the hut, "I sold my soul to Moros to gain this power. What lengths would you go to to save this woman?"

The blast was stopped by Erza's Adamantine shield, though it crumbled after the energy subsided.

"Erza..." Lucy started, _'that could have killed you. So many things could have, but you don't give up...'_

'Impressive," Rune conceded, folding his arms.

"Stop rambling!" Natsu shouted, Happy flying him at the man, his fist covered in flames. The punch caught the demon in the face, causing him to hurtle towards the ground. Natsu followed him, readying another attack. Just as it was about to hit, Rune disappeared, reappearing behind him, slamming the dragon slayer down with a kick to the back.

"You caught me by surprise there," Rune said, "trust me, it won't happen again."

Natsu growled, once more heading for the demon. Rune avoided all his attacks, occasionally throwing in one of his own, simply playing with the dragon slayer. Laxus let loose a lightning roar, only for it to be redirected. Even Gildarts could not get through to the man. Erza slashed at him with several swords whilst equipped in her Heaven's Wheel armour.

"Fight fair, you bastard!" Natsu yelled, finally getting a kick to land on Rune's ribs, "Fight on the ground!"

_'That's it, I need to get the wings!' _Lucy thought, "Gate of the Archer, I open thee!"

"Say no more, moshi-moshi." The spirit said, nocking three arrows and firing them with great accuracy at Rune's wing. The arrows sliced straight through. Rune gritted his teeth, landing on the ground, black blood trailing from the created holes.

"Heh. You are a persevering bunch of brats. I can still defeat you on the ground, just watch."

He quickly lunged for Natsu, his fist meeting the dragon slayer's. Natsu did all he could not to scream in pain as the dark magic surrounded his arm, causing a great deal of agony.

"Do you feel it, human? The power of Moros?" Rune asked, grinning madly. Gildarts attempted a kick to the back, and although the kick connected, Gildarts' Crash magic had been nullified. He was suddenly sent flying with an elbow to the face. Rune then kicked Natsu hard across the face, causing the boy to collide with a rock.

"Get Mary!" Laxus called, himself readying to attack the demon.

"Thanks for reminding me, heh." Rune said, sending a ball of magic straight at the hut, and this time destroying the plants around it, the boards of the house collapsing.

"You bastard," Gajeel spat, slamming an iron-covered fist into Rune's head. Erza appeared behind him, delivering a swift blow with her sword, black blood erupting from the tear it made in his armoured robes.

"Gah, you're all annoying," Rune said, grin entirely out of sight, a look of fury on his face, "I don't have time for this."

"You're not running away like you did last time." Laxus stated, flying at the man with a fist raised, electrical currents pulsing around it. Rune smirked, appearing to teleport, but only into the path of Gildarts, who smashed his knee into his face.

_'My power, it's weakened...'_

Natsu, who had gotten back up, once again charged at Rune, his fists fiery. Rune grabbed his wrists, the dark magic engulfing his hands again.

"I'll kill your friend here, just to prove what I- what Moros can do, heh. You're all pathetic if you thought you were getting somewhere," He stated, Natsu's screams deafening. The whole ordeal lasted for around five seconds, before Natsu dropped to the floor, lifeless.

"Natsu!" Erza yelled, voice laced with anguish and rage.

"May this be a prelude for what you will see later." Rune said, opening a portal and beating his wings hard to make his way up to it.

_'This is my fault...' _Lucy thought, _'even if I hadn't gotten involved, the end result would have been the same...'_

A stream of water suddenly wrapped around Rune's leg, stopping his ascent.

"Huh?"

"You're not going anywhere," Lucy raged, holding her Fleuve d'étoiles tightly, "because of you, so many people have died, and you act like it's nothing!"

"Because it is nothing, you imbeciles!" Rune replied, inhibited greatly by the holes in his wings, "In the grand scheme of things, you will realise a few deaths mean nothing!"

"Nothing..." Natsu muttered, stumbling as he struggled to stand on his feet, "how can the most important thing mean nothing?"

"You shouldn't be standing," Rune said, becoming more and more unsettled, _'did I really underestimate them too much? M-My powers!'_

"Fire Dragon's Roar!" Natsu snarled, a large jet of fire heading straight for Rune, darkness swirling around it.

"Salamander, did you really eat that shit?" Gajeel wondered aloud, watching as the blast engulfed the demon-man.

"No! No! This is impossible!" Rune screamed, intense pain seeping into every bone as he attempted to block the attack, "Master Moros' power should not work against me!"

"**Moros has no need for you any longer, Rune," **A smooth voice said, appearing to come from the swirling purple portal, **"even the simplest tasks you failed in. You are a liability. Master has taken your powers, your arrogance is your downfall. As for the rest of you, may we meet again soon."**

"Who is that?" Erza asked, looking around but finding no one.

"Emi! No!" Rune cried, the magic finally washing over him, his screams echoing for miles as his existence was erased. Natsu fell to the ground clutching his stomach.

"What the hell just happened?" Gajeel pondered, walking to the pile of ash that was once Rune, "What was that?"

"I don't know, but I'm going to take Natsu back to Magnolia. He's eaten a little too much junk food." Gildarts stated, throwing him over a shoulder and heading into the distance.

"What was the voice we heard?" Erza asked, "Who is Emi?"

"I don't know, but if she's stronger than he was then I don't want to know." Laxus responded.

"M-Mary..." Lucy stuttered, holding the frail frame of an old woman in her arms. She was barely alive.

"I don't blame you, child." Mary said, lifting a small hand to wipe away tears rolling down Lucy's face.

"I-It's all over, I failed." Lucy told, shoulders heaving. Erza knelt at her side, putting an arm around Lucy comfortingly.

"You've all got brains like rocks," Mary stated, causing the four remaining guild members to look at her confusedly. "None of this is over. Use your noggins. I have a feeling you could have worked it out if you weren't so busy focusing on that extraction nonsense."

"But it was the only way we could fulfil the prophecy without an heir," Lucy defended. Mary laughed, a feeble sound that turned into a coughing fit.

"See? This is the streak of Jude you have in you. Stubbornness. The prophecy clearly states that the heir of Lysander will wear the relics and battle Moros. None of this Soutirer rubbish you've been relying on." she said.

"But the last Lysander died twenty years ago," Lucy argued.

"You silly girl. There has been a Lysander under your nose this entire time," Mary revealed to the shock of the group, "they're a resilient bunch, you know."

"W-What?" Lucy uttered, brain racing to process this new development.

"Yes, Jakob Lysander may have been killed twenty years ago, but not before leaving a child. This poor child grew up in conditions no one should have, but developed into a better person for it." Mary struggled.

"Who is it, Mary-sama?" Lucy inquired, arms shaking.

"Do not be scared, children, for the bringer of light is already here amongst us. Isn't that right, Erza Lysander?"


	8. Goodbye, Mary

**Thanks to all those reviewers, I'm hoping everyone enjoys this chapter too! **

**Well done for guessing it was Erza, though sometimes I have the subtlety of a brick! Honestly, it never crossed my mind that Lucy could have been the prophecy child. It's a fantastic idea! Anyway, you would have all been thrown if it had been Ichiya. _Just imagine._**

**Men.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own FT.**

* * *

"Erza... Lysander?" Laxus repeated.

"All this time she was right here." Gajeel said in disbelief. Erza herself was frozen in shock, unable to think or feel in that moment. Lucy gave out a shrill cry as Mary lay limp in her arms. This brought Erza back into reality. She held the blonde tightly against her as she tried to come to terms with her own thoughts, conflicting emotions tearing at her mind.

_'I'm... Erza Lysander?'_

"We'll tell the guild the news," Laxus said, wanting to be away from the emotional scene, "they should know as soon as possible."

Gajeel followed him as they too departed.

"S-she was the last thing I had..." Lucy whispered, "and now she's gone. Just like my mother."

"That's not true," Erza said, pushing her own troubles aside for the sake of Lucy in that moment, "you have me. Natsu. Gray. The rest of Fairy Tail. We're here for you."

Lucy let go of the woman's body and threw herself at Erza, arms wrapping around her neck as she sobbed loudly. Erza returned the embrace, kissing the mage's head softly.

"We should bury her somewhere she would have liked." Erza suggested after the crying subsided. Lucy nodded against her shoulder, finding the strength to pull away.

"In the cemetery, close to my mother. She would have liked that. No coffin though, she said she wanted to give back to nature what it gave to her."

Erza helped the blonde to her feet and picked up Mary's frail form, following Lucy to the aforementioned cemetery. Finding an empty plot and a spare shovel, Erza began to dig as Lucy sat at the side on a step, staring into space. Placing the body into the deep hole, Erza began to shovel the dirt back in until it stood as a large mound.

"Goodbye, Mary-sama. Don't get too cranky with those in the next world," Lucy said softly, words falling out of her mouth as she smiled sadly.

Birds chirped in the trees around them, leaves rustling.

"Thank you for everything, Erza," Lucy spoke, standing up. She walked into the neighbouring gardens, the flowers bright under the sun.

"It wouldn't be right to leave you feeling like this," Erza responded, stabbing the shovel into the mound and wiping her forehead. She followed the girl into the gardens.

"Not just for this. I mean everything. Thanks for saving my life in the crypt. Thanks for trying to save Mary's life. Thanks for helping me so much." the blonde added, turning and taking Erza's hand in her own, metal fingers scraping against the steel of Erza's gauntlets. Despite the seriousness of the situation, Erza could feel herself blush at the contact.

"Then you're welcome, but I do not need thanking," she replied, "I did what is right."

They stood like that for what seemed like hours as spring blossoms flew over them. Lucy felt words push at her throat, but could not utter how she felt, no matter how much each cell in her body burned with the want to. The urge was irresistible, but met the immovable object of her doubts, and fear of rejection held her back. It was eventually Erza that broke the silence.

"Lucy, I-" She began, only to be interrupted by Warren's telepathy.

"**Erza, Lucy, Master Makarov wants to see you right away,**" his voice told.

And with that, the moment was broken, all strength Lucy had gathered leaving her. She sighed.

_'Maybe another day.'_

* * *

When they entered the Fairy Tail building, waves of whispers erupted.

Makarov opened an eye as he sat on the bar, legs crossed.

"You are the last surviving Lysander descendant." He stated, taking a long drink from a mug that was sat next to him.

"So it would seem." Erza responded.

"It explains so much," Lucy said quietly, "like how we could get through Lysander's tomb. I'm sure there were more security measures on it than we had seen, but we got through them because Erza was of the Lysander bloodline. It also explains why I couldn't get through the final barrier."

"And how do you feel, Erza-san?" Mirajane asked kindly, placing a drink down in front of her.

"I don't know. I was just Erza, until I was captured and met Jellal. Then I was Erza Scarlet. Now I'm Erza Lysander, and the fate of this world rests on my shoulders. I don't know how I'm meant to feel." The requip mage answered honestly, looking at her lap.

"To me you don't have to be anyone but yourself," Gray said with a smile, "you are Erza. One of my best friends. Natsu thinks so too, but the idiot is too sick to tell you right now."

"You don't have to be some hero," Laxus added, "you're just Erza the S-Class Fairy Tail mage. Don't get some chip on your shoulder."

"Erza will always be a man in my eyes." Elfman contributed, Evergreen shaking her head in agreement as she sat on his lap. Other utterances of support followed from every member in the building.

"Thank you, everyone," Erza responded sincerely, feeling uplifted by their messages, "when I defeat Moros, I'll dedicate it to my family, Fairy Tail."

"I can drink to that!" Cana shouted, holding up a mug of beer, the liquid spilling down the sides. "Also, to Mary! May she disturb the peace!"

Lucy couldn't help but smile.

"You'd drink to anything." Carla remarked, Cana's only response being to shove a bottle in the Exceed's mouth, to Wendy's despair.

"Is it ethical to get a cat drunk?" Pantherlily asked before shrugging and joining them.

"We don't know when this final battle will occur until Levy deciphers the book to that point," Makarov said, "so in the meantime, I think it's time we had a party! To the death of Moros, who will be slain by our very own Erza!"

A raucous cheer broke out, and the guild hall suddenly became very noisy.

* * *

Gajeel stood in the kitchen, chair propped against the door handle to stop any unwanted guests. Checking on his apple pie he watched in content as the cover began to brown.

"Geehee."

Taking it from the oven, he closed the door, heading for the adjoining room where Levy was working hard. Upon being invited to enter after knocking, he saw the girl was visibly exhausted.

"You should eat this," He commanded, pushing aside the book and placing the pie in front of her weary face, "did you find out anything else?"

"I'm close to it," Levy struggled through a yawn, turning her attention to the pie, "did you make this yourself?"

"No, of course not," Gajeel denied, "Mirajane made it. I just thought I'd bring it in."

"Then why are you wearing her baking apron?" Levy asked, unable to stifle a giggle as he looked down and blushed at the pink garment.

"You should rest," the dragon slayer said, swiftly changing the subject, "this book is taking it out of you. You're no use dead on the floor from exhaustion."

"But I'm so close to finishing-"

"I don't care. Juvia can take you back to Fairy Hills when you've finished eating, she said she was leaving soon. You need rest, you look a mess."

"Geez, thanks Prince Charming," Levy shot back, digging the spoon into the pie and eating a piece, "this is so good. Where did you learn how to bake?"

"I don't know how to bake. Like I said, I didn't make it."

Levy snorted, but ate the rest of her cake in a happy silence. When she was finished, she stood and rubbed a smear of flour from Gajeel's face with a thumb, smiling smugly as he looked at the powder guiltily.

"Don't worry, Mr Cold-As-Iron, I won't tell anyone about your sensitive side."

Back in the main hall, celebrations did not seem to be ceasing. Lucy rubbed at her eyes tiredly.

"Are you tired? We could go back to my room," Erza suggested, "I mean, if you want to, I'm not forcing you to or anything-"

"I'd like that," Lucy said, "I think I need a few more parties before I can keep up with you guys."

They slipped out easily into the cool night air, arms linked as they walked to Erza's place at Fairy Hills.

"It's weird, how everyone can be so full of joy when the battle could happen at any moment," Lucy stated, holding Erza's arm a little tighter when a cold breeze tickled her bare legs.

"They believe in me," Erza explained, "everyone is believing in me. That's why I cannot lose; with their strength I can be the strongest mage in the world."

"I believe in you," Lucy said, making Erza smile.

"I'll remember that," she replied, admiring the streets of Magnolia as they bathed in the moonlight.

* * *

"I'll be a minute!" Lucy called from the bathroom as Erza rested under the sheets, thankful to be in her own bed again after sleeping in numerous tents. Thinking about Lucy snuggling next to her made her think of other possible events, her face heating up rapidly.

_'Stop it, you pervert,' _She scolded herself, trying to calm her raging hormones. _'We're just sleeping with each other. Not in that way. This feeling is... is...'_

"Are you okay, Erza? You look a little off," Lucy inquired, tilting her head at the girl, "I knew Elfman's curry 'for men' looked suspicious."

"N-no, I'm fine." Erza responded, patting the space next to her. Lucy obliged with the unsaid request, slipping in next to the requip mage and facing away from her. Erza felt like she would faint.

"You're not gonna sleep?" Lucy asked after five minutes of Erza sitting rigidly against the wall.

"O-of course." Erza stumbled, turning off the lamp, and facing the other way. Sometime during the night she felt the blonde's head burrow against her neck. When her desires finally switched off, Erza fell into a satisfying, dreamless sleep to the rhythmic sound of Lucy's steady breathing.


	9. Judoc Lysander

**Disclaimer: I don't own FT**

* * *

"I didn't think you'd do something so stupid," Gray said, taunting the dragon slayer, "you've outdone yourself."

"But it killed him, didn't it?" Natsu grinned, cracking his knuckles as he sat on a table. They were discussing the battle that had occurred the previous day. Though Natsu was still sick, he was no longer bedridden.

"It seems there is no limit to your powers, Natsu," Erza added, "I'm sure you could take out the entire Void Crusaders' army if you wanted to."

"I've never seen power like that in all my travels," Lucy said, "actually, I don't think I've seen any power on the level of Fairy Tail's except for these weird guys attacking now."

"We have to be ready for whoever the woman was, and whoever else there may be," Gray warned, becoming pensive, "if Rune was fighting with his powers being drained, these guys at full strength will be tough."

"Erza," Gildarts called, standing over the armour pieces piled carefully on the floor, "it's time for you to try on some new clothes."

Erza walked to the armour, picking up the boots and inspecting them.

"Do you feel anything from them?" Lucy asked curiously. Erza shook her head.

"Just what I felt when I held the pauldrons, but we all felt that." She responded, the boots disappearing from her hands to her pocket dimension. She had returned her Sea Empress Armour to the real world to make space, figuring it would be the least useful under the circumstances. The guild members watched as the pieces disappeared one by one.

"Is there any chance Erza-san isn't the last descendant?" Wendy asked fretfully, fearing for the safety of the S-Class mage.

"Mary was never wrong with her knowledge." Lucy told the young girl, looking apologetic. Erza placed a reassuring hand on Wendy's shoulder.

"Don't waste energy worrying about me. You'll have battles of your own to face up to when it comes to it," She said, "I'll do my best to defeat Moros. The world depends on it."

"Erza's best is stronger than anything!" Happy chimed in, Natsu proudly nodding in agreement.

"Try the armour, Erza." Makarov ordered, bringing them back to the immediate topic. Erza complied, body lighting up as her normal armour disappeared, replaced by the ivory pieces as they bound around her frame.

"Whoa! Erza looks awesome!" Natsu whooped, fist in the air.

"How do you feel?" Makarov asked, soon noticing something was wrong. Lucy touched the young woman's exposed forearm, unable to move it even a slight amount.

"It's like she's been petrified!" She said, voice quivering, _'Erza...'_

"Were the pieces cursed?" Gray uttered worriedly, "Is it possible Moros knew all along?"

* * *

Erza could hear their voices and see their faces, including her own.

"Is Gray right? Were the pieces poisoned?" she asked herself, looking at the scene. A deep, hearty chuckle came from behind her. She span around, sword in her hand.

"Of course the pieces aren't poisoned," A tall, muscular man boomed, his red curly beard framing a wide jaw, "I made them myself after all. Nothing can get into them."

"W-who are you?" Erza stammered, raising her sword.

"Hah, put the sword down. I'm a spirit, you can't attack me. This is a vision, you'll be back to your friends when I've finished." he replied, grinning. He was dressed in armour that matched the set Erza was wearing, with the addition of a helmet, ivory like the rest of the armour apart from the visor, which was a dark metal.

"You're Judoc Lysander," The Requip mage declared, finally lowering her weapon, unsure of how she should be feeling.

"And you're the only one of my descendants left. This means my prophecy is coming true," he replied, face becoming solemn, "you're the poor mite who has to deal with it."

"You have a strange way of motivating people." Erza shot back, dismissing her sword and folding her arms.

"When the books said I had a nightmare about Moros," Judoc began, ignoring her remark, "they weren't talkin' metaphorically. I had a one-year long battle with that horror. Hard work for a smith."

"O-one year?" Erza repeated, astounded. Doubt began to crash over her in stormy waves. How could she maintain - let alone win - a battle that could last a year?

"Don't worry about the time. Yours will be shorter, I made sure of it. Mine lasted a year because that's what Moros wanted; we fought on his terms, in his realm. But then I forged the Hellsbane Armour. This time, Moros is fighting on my terms. He can't drag you into his hell-hole if you're wearing that."

"What is special about the armour? What properties does it possess? How has it not weakened over time?" Erza questioned, eagerly awaiting the answers.

"My soul is in that armour. That's why I'm talkin' to you now," He answered, gesturing to her cuirass, "and that's why it never aged."

"But why didn't you defeat Moros properly when you faced him? How could he come back?" Erza continued, "Who is Moros?"

"Moros is the combination of every bad thing on this planet. Fear gives him strength, allows him to become a real thing. When I killed him last time, he had built up from the beginning ages, when emotions were created, finally ready to destroy the world with his demons. But when I defeated him, it was in his own realm. That meant he could just wait again for fear to build up, but someone sped up the process with those attacks. He should be weaker now," Judoc said, hands on hips.

"What's stopping that from happening again if I defeat him? Will he not just come back?"

"I'm going to stop that from happenin' again," The smith vowed, "when you defeat him this time, I'm taking him to the heavens to be purged. I've been waiting many centuries for this, my soul is restless. When I get to him, he ain't coming back."

"What if I lose?" Erza said. The man chuckled.

"Lysander's don't lose! We get back up again when we're knocked down! You should know that, you've done it enough times on your adventures," he replied, placing a large hand on her shoulder. The touch was what Erza imagined fatherly love to feel like.

"But my battle against Moros is mine and mine alone. Nobody can help me."

"Nonsense. I'm right here with you." Judoc assured.

"What was it like to battle him?"

"He'll use dirty play and trickery to try drive you insane. The worst part is the illusions, the worst fears you can think of bein' played in your mind. You have to remember to stay with the light. It's just fear, ignore it and remember your happiest times. That's how you beat him," the smith divulged, hand slipping away, "there are also some things I need to give you."

He removed his helm, revealing a mop of flattened auburn hair. The object glowed and reduced in size in his hands. He gently placed it over Erza's head. A large shield materialised in his right hand, glowing around the edges. The dominant colour was brown, a hammer and anvil decoration the only ivory present. Erza took it, noticing it was light as a feather.

"If anyone else other than my bloodline picked that up, they'd have a hard time liftin' it," Judoc explained, "now you're all set to kill the darkness. Good luck."

He turned and began to walk away.

"You're the only blood family I've known," Erza called after him, feeling reluctant to let him go. He stopped and looked over a broad shoulder.

"That ain't true. Your name might be Lysander, but I damn well know your true blood lies in that guild," he said, gesturing at her worried friends, "but should you need something when they aren't around, just look inside yourself. I'll always be watchin' over my family. Especially you, Titania."

With those words, his back finally disappeared.

* * *

Erza glowed for a second upon being returned to the physical world, now donning the helm and shield.

"What happened?" Natsu asked, looking at the two new arrivals confusedly. "How did you get those?"

Erza smiled fondly as she was bombarded with questions. She stood with the help of Lucy.

"Enough," She ordered, quieting the curious murmuring, "a friend paid me a visit and told me all I need to know."

"The armour... it feels different," Lucy commented, "stronger somehow."

"All the pieces are together," Gray noted, he too feeling the energy, "so now it's complete. Is this enough to kill Moros?"

"I'll make sure it is," Erza said confidently.

"Shouldn't you have a sword or something?" Carla asked, noticing the lack of weapons.

Erza responded, "My own sword will strike down the heart of evil, I don't need anybody else's for that."

Levy rushed into the guild hall clutching the dark book to her chest.

"Did you find something, Levy?" Lucy pried, seeing the panicked look in the girl's eyes.

"I deciphered the book, they'll fully attack on the fifth night next month!" She relayed. Lucy counted the days in her head before gasping.

"B-but that's exactly a month away! There's no way we'll be ready in time!" The Celestial Spirit Mage cried.

"Fairy Tail doesn't give up," Makarov said calmly, "we have to be ready for this as much as we can be. So stop being lazy, and get yourselves in shape for war!"

"You should go tell the Council, Gramps. You can return what's left of the Soutirer scroll while you're at it," Laxus said. Makarov sighed.

"I suppose I should. You kids behave yourselves while I'm gone. And train!" He commanded, shuffling out of the room to pack his belongings.

Natsu cracked his knuckles, grinning widely, "I'm gonna take them all out. Rune was nothing!"

"Rune had you sick as a dog yesterday," Gray retorted, "don't think you can succeed with the same thing twice."

"I wonder how Moros will present himself?" Lucy said, hand on chin. Levy smiled as she interrupted the exchange.

"The book says Erza will be transported to the Hall of Echoes to fulfil the prophecy." She told, finger trailing down the page.

"Huh? Where's that?" Natsu asked. Levy shrugged.

"When Judoc Lysander fought Moros the first time, they fought in Moros' dimension, which is a mirror-image of Earthland, but everything is desecrated. The Hall of Echoes existed there, but the book doesn't tell the location."

"Probably to stop anybody else finding it and interfering." The Requip mage said, equipping her Heart Kreuz armour again.

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's train. Fight me, Erza!" Natsu nagged, running at her with a ball of flame in his fist. Erza merely used his momentum against him, dodging the punch and grabbing his arm, flipping him over and slamming his back against the floor.

"You should be resting," she chided as he groaned in pain, "not exerting your energy. Our training begins tomorrow."

Lucy admired the natural leadership the young woman seemed to emit, realising that the guild seemed a lot more confident when she, Natsu and Gray were. Erza may have been the pillar holding the world together at that moment in time, but she and her closest friends were also pivotal to the running of Fairy Tail. Little by little, Lucy could sense her feelings becoming stronger, unsure as to whether that was a good thing or not. She looked at the mage who was currently berating Natsu, and could say one thing for definite:

_'Erza Scarlet, you are really something.'_


	10. Waiting

**A bit of filler and stuff before the real stuff happens. ErLu happens in this story, I promise!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own FT**

* * *

The month before the battle was filled with activity.

The Magic Council took the decision to evacuate all citizens from the major towns that had yet to be attacked, setting them up in camps built on the ruins of destroyed towns. This created much upset, but was seen as necessary by the higher powers to keep the citizens of Fiore out of trouble. Protective runes had been cast around these designated areas as an extra security measure; a prediction on where the enemy would attack was never truly safe. Only the guild members willing to fight (which was many) remained in the cities to protect all they could. Those who did not wish to be on the front line were to help guard and police the citizens.

In Fairy Tail, Lucy learnt a lot more about the guild's history and the recent battles the mages had faced. She was awestruck by the tales of the Tower of Heaven, the utter defeat of the Oracion Seis, but most notably the redemption of Gajeel and Juvia, who were now settled and happy in Fairy Tail. Hearing about Erza's past had brought her to tears as the Requip mage opened up to her in private, feeling particularly strained under the pressure of being the world's knight that day. Indeed it was not only Erza that had a sad past; most of the guild members had been vagabonds when they joined, looking for a family. Lucy almost felt out-of-place in this respect. Her story did not seem to compare to others.

She sat with Levy in her room at Fairy Hills, admiring the collection of books. The two had struck a deep friendship during Lucy's time with the guild.

"You should have a pair of these," Levy said, offering Lucy a pair of Gale-Force Reading Glasses, "I have lots of spares, and you said you lost yours on your journeys."

"Thank you Levy-chan," Lucy responded gratefully, taking the glasses and hooking them onto the front of her shirt, "I'm sure they'll be useful when I can get into my novels again."

"Do you think things will return to normal soon?" Levy asked, "I hope this battle doesn't last for a long time."

"Me too," Lucy agreed, "but I don't think it will. Erza will kill Moros quickly, then all the demons should die."

Levy giggled, "You have a crush, don't you?"

Lucy blushed, suddenly finding her hands interesting. "Is it that noticeable?"

Levy shook her head, "No, I just pay attention to detail, Lu-chan."

"I've tried to push my feelings back but I can't. There's something about her that I can't resist," the blonde admitted. Was it the strength in her stance? Her endless beauty? Her indomitable spirit? Lucy reckoned it was all three, and more.

"Did you know Erza-san likes novels that are a little... naughty?" Levy revealed, traitorous glint in her eye. This made Lucy flush further.

"R-really? That's surprising," she responded to the knowledge, trying hard to not let her mind drift. Changing the subject, she asked, "are you going to be fighting?"

"Yes," The blue-haired mage replied, "usually I'm not much of a fighter, but I can do my best for the good of the world."

"I'll do my best too," Lucy said, "I don't know why, but I just have this feeling that everything is going to end okay."

"All this rests on Erza-san. I wonder how she's coping," The younger girl said, thinking of the pressure laid thick on Erza's young shoulders.

"When this ends, I'm going to tell her how I feel," Lucy swore, smiling with affection for Erza. "I don't want to burden her with it now."

* * *

"Ex-quip!" Erza said, changing to her Flame Empress armour to stave off some of (fully recovered) Natsu's flames. Cutting through his roar, her sword slammed straight into the hard, dry mud, the dragon slayer barely dodging the attack. Swiftly equipping her Flight armour, she lunged after him, this time managing to land a solid kick against his ribs. From the corner of her eye she saw several spikes of ice heading straight for her. With ease, she sidestepped the attack, jumping at Gray with her arms outstretched.

"Time for a break!" Mirajane called, carrying a plate of drinks. Erza wiped her forehead, panting heavily as she equipped a bikini to cool down. She, Natsu and Gray had spent the large majority of their time training against each other to hone their skills. By the time Erza returned to her room at Fairy Hills each night, Lucy was blissfully fast asleep. Erza had resorted to sleeping on the sofa, not wanting to wake up the blonde girl. This meant that they only saw each other for fleeting moments, but Erza looked forward to them each day.

"You should have a day to rest," Mira suggested as the Requip mage took a long drink of lemonade, "Lucy-san has been asking about you. She says you're always gone by the time she wakes up."

"I need to do this training," Erza replied, "the fate of Earthland is up to me. I cannot waste a second."

"You're already skilled, Erza-san," Mira pressed, "besides, training can't reflect what you'll face and it won't show what you're capable of. Are you sure you aren't hiding from something?"

"Positive." Erza mumbled in reply, knowing full well she was partly training so hard to avoid the blonde. The urge to draw the girl into her arms and kiss her was becoming unbearable. It was hard enough for her in the evenings, where she would see Lucy sleeping soundly, and her body would burn with the longing to give the girl a goodnight kiss on the forehead. Sometimes she gave in to this longing, unable to resist.

"You should spend the rest of the day with her," Gray suggested, "she's obviously worried about you."

"And then maybe you could spend some time with Juvia," Mira teased, seeing his face drop.

"Where is Lucy?" Erza asked, "Maybe I can take her for coffee."

"Like a date?" Happy said, "You liiike her."

Erza smiled shyly, "I am many things, but a liar isn't one. Lucy is a very beautiful girl. Not a date though, Happy, we're just friends."

"She is with Levy at Fairy Hills," Evergreen said, walking to where they were, Elfman in tow. "I saw them together when I came out. Better make your move quick, or Levy will be in there before you."

The red-haired mage chose to ignore that snide remark, despite how much she wanted to throttle Evergreen, instead heading for the Fairy Hills dormitories.

* * *

"Oh, hello Erza-san!" Levy greeted upon opening her door to the sight of Erza Scarlet.

"I was wondering if I may spend some time with Lucy, though I don't want to interrupt your time together," Erza said kindly. Levy simply shook her head, smiling. Feeling slightly devious and wanting to speed up the trudging process that was the two getting together, she concocted a plan in her head.

"She's just in the bathroom brushing her hair," Levy said, thinking quickly on the spot, knowing that Lucy was in fact probably getting out of the shower, the two having just returned from the beach, "go straight in, she'll be happy to see you!"

Erza gave Levy her thanks and entered the room, still astounded by the amount of books that dominated it. Turning the handle of the door leading to the bathroom, she nearly dropped dead when she opened it.

"E-Erza!" Lucy screamed in shock, towel falling. Erza could not look away, transfixed at the naked beauty in front of her, Lucy desperately trying to cover her modesty. She felt her face -and body- heat up as she returned to reality, still unable to turn away from the spectacle. Neither of them noticed Levy slip out of the room, or her loud chortles as she left the building completely.

"Stop looking!" Lucy ordered, throwing the nearest object - a bottle of shampoo - at the young woman, striking her in the forehead. This made Erza snap out of her daze, stumbling backwards and slamming the door shut.

"S-Sorry, L-Lucy!" She stuttered, heart rate through the roof, "Levy said I could go straight in."

When Lucy emerged a minute later, she was fully dressed and looking incredibly uncomfortable.

"I just wanted to take you for coffee, we haven't spent much time together. I'm sorry, I should have knocked first." Erza explained, her face sweating slightly. She internally sighed in relief when Lucy smiled.

"It's okay, it was an accident, right? I'd love to go for coffee right now," she said, _'yes, Levy. It was an accident, wasn't it?'_

"Where is Levy?" Erza asked, only now noticing the avid reader was missing.

"I don't know. I hope she's okay," Lucy replied, narrowing her eyes, _'because she sure as hell won't be when I get my hands on her.'_

"Perhaps she just had some business to attend to," Erza offered, holding her arm out to the blonde. "I'm sure she's fine."

_'You're so oblivious when it comes to the most obvious things,' _Lucy thought, linking her own arm with Erza's as they left, smiling at the Requip mage.


	11. Battleground

**Disclaimer: I don't own FT**

* * *

"They're here," Mirajane announced, shifting into her Satan Soul takeover, preparing for battle.

A massive portal appeared above the town of Magnolia, bigger than any portal they had seen before. Demon minions seemed to rain from the sky, almost double the amount that had landed in Hargeon. The members of Fairy Tail watched the scene with dread, unsure of how they were to defeat the threats.

"Finally attacking Magnolia..." Makarov commented calmly, knowing the guild was relying on his leadership, "Magnolia is our home. We will protect it with our lives until the very end!"

Everybody cheered, splitting off to meet the enemies and defend the town, each knowing they could die that day. The end of the world potentially loomed, and its fate depended on the performance of one young woman, Erza Scarlet. She had been ordered to not fight in order to conserve her energy for her real battle, expecting to be transported to it at any moment. Natsu, Gajeel and Lucy stayed with her to ensure her safety.

"Erza," Lucy called, "promise me you won't give up, whatever happens."

Erza looked at the blonde with a smile, "I promise, Lucy."

They had no more time to speak, for then they were confronted by a sizeable group of demons. Lucy thrust her keys in the air, ready for action.

"Gate of the Archer! Gate of the Lion! Open!" She cried, two forms appearing soon after. They needed no explanation, setting off immediately to attack. Demons were cut through with ease, but Lucy knew it was the number, not the strength of them, that would cause real problems. She was unsure as to how long she could fight.

"You killed my brother-in-arms," A large demon said, his aura much more powerful than Rune's had been. Natsu scowled.

"Who are you?" He demanded, Gajeel next to him.

"I am Thanatos. Now you're going to die."

The two dragon slayers barely avoided a swing from the demon's scythe, which glowed with an aura matching its owner's. Thanatos suddenly appeared in front of Natsu, smashing him in the face with the pole of the weapon. Gajeel's punch was redirected towards the pink-haired boy, the force knocking all air from his lungs. Gajeel then found himself being picked up by his throat, thrown a considerable distance. Thanatos turned his attention to Erza, who was now open to attack, her assigned guardians preoccupied.

"If I kill you now, it saves Master Moros the hard work," He stated, swiftly flying at her, his scythe meeting her shield.

"You people are despicable," Erza replied, slashing at him with her own sword, "I will destroy your leader."

Thanatos jumped back, avoiding Natsu's flaming fist by disappearing completely. Reappearing behind him, he swung his scythe, the blade catching Natsu's shin. Blood erupted from the cut as he grunted in pain. Gajeel aimed an Iron Dragon's Roar at Thanatos, the tornado heading straight for the demon. Instead of hitting him, however, it hit Natsu.

"Gajeel...you... bastard!" Natsu shouted, getting to his feet.

"I redirect magic. It's more fun to watch prey kill each other," Thanatos said, again focusing his attention on Erza, "I will not tolerate any blasphemy against Master Moros."

His scythe morphed into a spear, which he threw with deadly accuracy. As Erza watched it slice through the air, she found she could not lift her shield arm.

_'He... he's controlling the armour!'_

Without fully comprehending what was happening, she saw Lucy stand in the path of the spear. The tip ate through the flesh of her stomach easily, coming cleanly through her back. Erza caught the girl in her arms as she fell backwards, eyes clouding over.

"Lucy, stay with me," She urged, hand on Lucy's cheek. Blood trickled from the blonde's mouth.

"E-Erza... I..." Lucy managed, before her breath left her. Erza gripped her shoulders tightly, heart racing as she realised Lucy's no longer was. All the things she wanted to but could now never say passed through her mind, tears pooling in both eyes as sorrow ate at her stomach and chest. Her own body began to glow a blue colour, disappearing from the arena that Magnolia had become.

Natsu roared with fury.

* * *

"Lucy..." Erza whispered, falling to her knees in a large hall. It was old and crumbling, the pillars cracked. Mounds of rock and dirt piled up at the sides. The sound of footsteps caught her attention and she looked up.

Moros was not what she expected.

A somewhat small weedy man stood at the other end of the hall. His face was gaunt, cheekbones prominent and with dark circles under his eyes. Stubble lined his thin jaw. His eyes were devoid of colour, just solid white circles set in a face of stone.

"Moros," Erza said, almost as a greeting, grief gripping her heart as she stood. The man simply watched her, shabby suit hanging from his frame.

"I don't want to be here," he said, "but my nature forces me to do things I do not want to."

"We aren't forced to do anything," Erza responded, voice hard as steel, "you kill because you enjoy it."

"No... you should have killed me properly the first time," he continued, closing his eyes.

"I don't care for your talking. You killed Lucy!" Erza raged, lifting her sword and charging at the man. He simply flicked his finger, sending her smashing through several pillars.

"I did not kill Lucy. Thanatos did. He brought me back, and I did not want to be brought back," Moros revealed, black tears streaming down his face, "but because you did not kill me properly last time, we were destined to meet again. Look how weak I am."

Erza ignored his ramblings, running at him once more, this time with the shield raised. This had the same result however, leaving her embedded in the wall. _'I thought this armour was supposed to protect me?' _she thought to herself.

"Kill me properly, Lysander. Stand on your feet and kill me."

The Requip mage felt her body being removed from the wall and set on the ground. When she stood, Moros opened his eyes, looking directly into hers. She screamed as the bloodiest images of her past were played in front of her eyes. Then the scene changed to her friends, all dead and pointing the finger of blame at her. The scenes got progressively worse.

_'It's just an illusion...' s_he rationalised, trying to pull herself out of it but unable to, _'think of something happy!'_

She immediately thought of Lucy, but the image was contorted into her death, the look in her eyes haunting as her life ebbed away. She mumbled a 'why didn't you save me?' before more gruesome images appeared.

"Stop!" She begged, dropping her shield and sword, falling to her knees as the feeling of absolute fear snaked in her system. She wanted to scream and cry, feeling like a child facing a monster ten times its size.

Moros muttered, "Don't be weak."

He threw Erza's body around once more. This, combined with the illusions, was enough to make her feel on the edge of death. She struggled to breathe as she shuffled to her knees. Moros walked leisurely to her, gripping her face as he roughly turned her head to face him. His touch was the single most painful physical thing she had experienced, and she screamed accordingly.

"You cannot give up. Don't let this world fall, Lysander. I want you to win, but I can't just let you," he told, more tears falling. He threw her to the other end of the hall, reducing the great Titania to nothing but a toy.

* * *

Thanatos easily deflected Natsu's attack, retrieving his spear carelessly from Lucy's body. Gajeel hurtled towards him, only to have the spear smashed over his head. It morphed back into a scythe.

"You bastard!" Natsu shouted, attacks careless as his punches flew wildly, "How could you?!"

"Quite easily," Thanatos replied, slamming the heel of his palm into Natsu's nose with a crack, "but I did not mean to get her."

The dragon slayer stumbled backwards, head spinning as his nose throbbed. Rage filled his veins as he flew at Thanatos again, this time managing several hits in quick succession. Gajeel's arm transformed into a sword, the edges spinning as he too aimed an attack. The demon disappeared before it could hit, however, and he was hooked around the neck with the scythe. Natsu was smashed into the ground from a well-placed punch.

"We want this world for our own." Thanatos stated.

"Well you can't have it," Gajeel shot back, teeth snapping the blade of the scythe as he made quick work of eating it. Scales covered his body as he grinned, elbow flying back and landing a hit on the demon's face.

Meanwhile, Mirajane, Gray and Juvia were having trouble with the other significant enemy.

"W-who are you?" Gray asked, staggering forwards, avoiding stepping on Juvia's unconscious body.

Mirajane flew to the woman swiftly in her Halphas form, their forearms slamming together like two swords. Punches and kicks were exchanged equally, both blocking with no hits landing.

"Demon versus demon. Interesting." Emi commented, trying to blast Mira with a ball of dark energy at close range.

"Don't compare me to you." Mirajane spat, deflecting the magic with her own. She had heard Lucy had died, unable to control the despair pulsing within her.

"Ice Make: Ice Cannon!" Gray cried, the weapon in his hands as he fired at Emi. Emi allowed the ice to hit her, but was seemingly unaffected. She aimed a wave of magic at the Ice Make wizard, blasting him from his feet, he too unconscious.

Mirajane threw an attack at Emi, who had charged up her own. The two dark magical energies clashing together caused an enormous shock-wave, resulting in the destruction of the surrounding buildings. Mira was caught off-guard by a follow up blast, smashing into the ground with a crash. As she got to her feet, she was hit by a dark disc that sliced the skin of her stomach open. Flying in hot pursuit of the demon, her punches failed to inflict any damage. Emi appeared behind her.

"Hate is a powerful emotion. I can feel it in you." Emi stated, fist making hard contact with Mirajane's cheek. She was sent flying into a crumbling building.

"I don't hate anyone," Mirajane countered, immediately springing back from the attack. "Everybody has had some good in them. Even you people!"

Her Evil Explosion attack somehow landed a full hit on the demon, who staggered to her feet looking shocked.

"G-good?" She asked, smooth voice faltering, "I can't remember ever being good."

"Then I'll make you remember!" Mira vowed, large ball of dark energy narrowly missing its target. Emi seemed distracted, now struggling to keep up with the assault, haphazardly launching a counter-attack in Mirajane's direction.

"This world is built on fear," Emi proclaimed, "relive your worst memory and you will see."

Mirajane recognised the scene forced into her mind immediately. The day Lisanna died. She saw Elfman once again lose control and crush his sister, unable to master the full body take over. She choked up instantly, crying alongside her younger self and Elfman, seemingly lost in the memory, looking at Lisanna's innocent face. The blue eyes bored into her own, happy even as the light was draining from them.

"Lisanna..." she whispered, wiping her eyes as she began to glow, "I'll win for you!"

Focusing her energy, she charged a spell in her hands. She broke out of the scene, staring intently at her enemy who was clearly unsettled.

"This world is not built on fear," Mirajane spoke coolly, now in her Sitri form, "you are misguided if you think so."

"You came out of the memory," said Emi, shocked, "but how? Master Moros-"

"Fear is no match for the power of love," Mira interrupted, "you can show me the worst experiences I've had, but I will pull through all of them."

"The... power of love?"

"Because I keep loving!" the white-haired mage continued, "No matter what, I love my family in Fairy Tail!"

"I... I finally remember-"

"Soul Extinction!" Mirajane snarled, letting the attack loose. The black globe became a huge beam, encompassing Emi in a devastating blast of dark energy. Once the attack subsided, Emi was left broken and defeated on the ground. Mirajane landed next to her, taking heavy breaths as she reverted into her normal self.

"I remember. We were siblings," Emi told, gray skin glowing as it slowly turned to ash, tears falling down her cheeks. "Thanatos reawakened Moros, helping create his physical being, promising us protection with power. I never thought it was a good idea. I didn't want to, but I was tricked.

"We sold our souls for the power to strike fear into everyone, but every day, I myself, was afraid. We lost our identities to the powers. It was never worth it. I was never as powerful as my husband or son, but I've killed so many people... even I was human once."

Mirajane sadly looked on as the woman finally disappeared, glad that that particular battle was over. She walked to Gray and Juvia, who had awoken sometime during the fight and were gaping at her.

"And that's why I should never annoy you." Gray smiled. "You'll blow me to pieces."

"Of course not!" Mirajane laughed before becoming serious. "It's amazing what people will do for power, don't you think?"

* * *

"Lucy-san..." Wendy whispered, healing magic useless against the wound. Pantherlily had managed to carry the Celestial Spirit Mage through the streets of Magnolia to the Fairy Tail guild, where she was helping to heal the wounded members and Rune Knights.

Carla warned, "Don't push yourself, Wendy."

"I have to help her!" Wendy said, "She can't be dead."

Outside, they could hear the cries and agony of battle. The streets were awash with black and red blood alike, the clash between humans and demons fierce. Elfman had been one of the first casualties, having been hit by a poisoned arrow. Wendy had healed him, however, and he soon rushed back out to fight some more. Laxus and Gildarts were the two appointed to protect the guild building, and were doing a very good job. No demon had bothered Wendy as she worked.

"I wonder how Erza-san is doing," Wendy worried, knowing her and Lucy had been close. This steeled her resolve, and she swore to never give up on Lucy.

* * *

"You're disappointing me," Moros whispered, Erza lying motionless in front of him. Her body was battered and bruised, psychological well-being almost at breaking point. Spitting blood from her mouth, she pushed herself into a sitting position.

"Why don't you want to be here?" she wheezed, clutching her arm. Blood poured liberally from her elbow.

"I am made of fear. It is all I feel. Tell me, would you like to feel it every second of your endless existence? That fool summoned me so early, I can't control myself," he told. Erza looked up, gritting her teeth. Another illusion gripped her mind, this time showing her friends being tortured in various cruel ways, herself unable to protect them.

"S-stop..." Erza pleaded weakly. This earned her a kick in the face, bursting her lip wide open.

"Do not beg. It's unbecoming of you." Moros said, blasting her to the other end of the room. "Defeat me!"

As she sank against the wall, Erza did not know if she could hold on much longer. Nevertheless, she stood once more, weakly limping towards him as fast as she could. The illusion that invaded her mind this time was the most powerful. Snakes coiled around Lucy, crushing her body as she screamed, the sound sending shivers through her system.

"L-Lucy..." Erza whispered, reaching out to grab the snakes, only to find her hands were tied by one.

"She's dead because of your weakness," Moros taunted, breaking into the illusion. He put his hands on Erza's face, her cries of suffering filling the large space, the searing sensation biting through her skin.


	12. A New Dawn

**There's just one chapter after this. Enjoyed the ride?**

**Disclaimer: I don't own FT.**

* * *

"Where- Where am I?" Lucy wondered aloud, sitting up groggily. She gasped as she saw Erza being blasted into a pillar.

"Erza!" She called, climbing to her feet and trying to get close to the mage. Some sort of force was holding her back, and she found she could not get any closer. Any noise had been cancelled out, and Lucy was watching the battle in silence. She saw Erza stir, trying to get up, all her spirit seemingly drained. A gaunt man mumbled something before Erza gripped her head, screaming in what looked like total agony.

"I told her how to counter those illusions," a man chimed next to Lucy, voice causing her to jump, "but it seems like she can't remember any happy times right now. Another one of those illusions will drive her insane."

"Erza!" Lucy shouted again, wanting nothing more than to help. The man shook his head.

"She can't hear you. We're in a different place right now," he explained, folding his arms as he watched the fight.

"Who are you? Where are we?!" Lucy demanded.

"I'm the man you've been studyin' so much. Judoc Lysander. We're dead, and we're in purgatory, I guess you could call it," he explained, Lucy's eyes widening in shock.

"I'm dead!? I can't be dead!" She shrieked, "How am I here? Why are _you _here?"

"Jeez, you ask as many questions as Erza," Judoc whined, closing his eyes, "we're here because we have some unresolved things to sort out. I'm here because I'm takin' his scrawny ass to heaven. He looks a lot less healthy than last time. Must be because he was summoned early."

"H-heaven?"

"Look behind us, kid." Judoc said, Lucy noticing a glowing arch. It emanated warmth.

"This is heaven?" She asked, feeling compelled to walk to the gate.

"Don't go near it, or you won't be goin' back," Judoc warned, "it might feel nice now, but you have a lot to live for."

Lucy looked to the battlefield, Erza's nightmare seemingly stopping as she struggled to her feet, not yet ready to give up.

"But if I'm dead then I don't have a choice," Lucy stated. Judoc smiled.

"You still have a choice. Your friends are tryin' their best with your body right now. You can choose to go back," he revealed.

"How do I go back?" Lucy questioned quickly, wanting to be with her friends as soon as she could.

"You can't go yet," The smith said, "you have unresolved business here. Once you've solved it, destiny will follow your heart, and send you to the right place."

Lucy didn't reply. Moros had hit Erza with a powerful beam of magic, the girl being sent flying across the Hall of Echoes to smash into the far wall.

"She's barely alive. She's going to lose," Judoc said, any sign of emotion hidden from his face, "the illusions have taken her fightin' spirit. The next shot will kill her. I can't help her 'till she starts believing."

Lucy saw Moros power up his final attack in his hands, stepping back to allow the ball of black magic to grow. Looking at Erza's limp and lifeless body, tears welled in her eyes.

"Erza! Wake up!" she shouted, wishing the requip mage would move, wishing she could take away all the pain and stop everything.

"She can't hear you," Judoc repeated, "you're gonna have to shout louder than that to make her believe. You've saved her once already, I'm sure you can do it again."

Lucy ignored him, calling out her name again as loud as she could.

"That's better, but you really need some emotion to rip through this dimension into that one," Judoc stated, smiling as he drew his sword, the weapon shining brilliantly.

Moros' attack was fully charged at this point, lifting the energy in front of him. He released it, sending it across the huge space of the room towards Erza. Lucy allowed the tears to fall down her cheeks as emotion swelled in her chest, and she screamed with all her might.

"ERZA!"

* * *

Erza could do nothing but wait for the attack to come and annihilate every trace of her. She had failed, and the world would fall without her blood to protect it. Just as she was about to resign to her fate, she heard it. As powerful as a dragon's roar, Lucy's voice reverberated through the Hall of Echoes, carrying her name. Chills ran down her spine.

_'Of course,' _She thought, watching the black ball come closer and closer, _'I made a promise! I have no right to give up. You never did, Lucy.'_

Legs shaking and unsteady, she found the inner strength to stand on her feet, letting out a cry of rage as she picked up the forgotten shield and slammed it against the attack. The relics glowed a bright white. She felt energy refresh her bones, and knew in an instant that her ancestor was with her.

"What is this?" Moros muttered, shoulders slumped. He attempted to enter Erza's mind once more to weaken her further, but only found strong memories of a guild, full of smiling, welcoming people. He hissed in pain, burnt by the image of happiness.

"Your generals have killed so many people... I hope my friends are bestowing on them the punishment they deserve. As for you, I will grant you the noble death you require. Come, for this time I will not be so easy to defeat!" Erza declared, wounds forgotten as she ran at him with her shield raised, the attacks he threw at it hitting the surface harmlessly.

Moros looked at her, feeling a tightness he had only experienced once before wrap around whatever heart he had. Summoning an attack in his right hand, he prepared to meet her, seeing the determined anger burn behind her eyes. He could see the outline of a large, bearded man behind her, his own sword held high above his head.

_'You truly are of Lysander's blood after all.'_

Raising her sword, she cut through his dark magic, slicing his hand clean off. With no mercy, she followed up with a stab to the thigh, forcing him to kneel before her. The third strike was the fatal blow that punctured his chest, tip of the sword breaking through his suit. The force of it lifted his body from the ground as Erza stood firmly, roaring in both victory and anguish.

She watched as Moros' body dissolved into a shadowy spirit, gasping as her armour too began to disintegrate. The pieces glowed yellow as they fused into another spirit, engulfing the dark one. As the final piece, the cuirass, disintegrated, she smiled fondly at Judoc, who she knew was watching, before both spirits disappeared completely, leaving her standing in the Hall of Echoes alone.

* * *

Thanatos laughed as he saw the two dragon slayers crushed against the ground, defeated.

"It's time to end your lives, and build a new world!" He shouted, preparing an attack. Natsu laughed before coughing up blood. Gajeel grinned as he managed to kneel, looking at the demon with amusement in his eyes.

"Really? It looks like your life is the one that's ending." He stated, pointing to Thanatos' leg, which was quickly turning to ash.

"Master Moros... defeated?" Thanatos asked in disbelief, looking at his leg incredulously. "Defeated by that girl?"

"That's our Erza," Natsu said, struggling to his feet, "you killed Lucy. She ain't gonna forgive anyone for that. Neither are we."

Using the last of their energy, the dragon slayers mustered up a final roar, which totally obliterated Thanatos' body, the man not even given the time to scream. Around them, the incessant attacking of minions also stopped, their life turned to dust in an instant.

* * *

When Erza reappeared in front of her guild friends she fell to the floor, curling into a ball as sobs shook her frame. She looked especially frail and vulnerable without her armour equipped. Natsu and Gray slowly made their way to her, trudging through injuries and aching muscles.

"Erza... you saved everyone," Gray said, hand on her back.

"No," Erza countered, trying to stop the flow of tears, "I didn't save Lucy. She deserved to be here. Without her, we wouldn't have known anything. We wouldn't have won. I... I never told her how I feel for her."

"That's more reason to try be happy then," Natsu spoke, allowing the mage to cry on his shoulder, "you have to smile for Lucy. She wouldn't have wanted you to cry."

"Let's go home," Gray suggested, the rest of the Fairy Tail members agreeing and beginning the journey back. Erza supported Natsu as they walked, realising that she needed to be strong for the sake of her friends. After that, when she was alone, she could finally show her weakness.

* * *

"Lucy-san..." Wendy whispered, tired from the amount of magic she had used trying to revive Lucy.

"Wendy, your powers only heal people, they can't bring people back to life!" Carla warned, trying to get the dragon slayer to stop for her own safety. Wendy clenched her fist as she looked at the still body on the bed.

"She's not dead!" she asserted, "I can sense it, she's still there!"

Lucy watched the scene as she stood alone, having watched Judoc march into battle alongside his final descendant a while earlier. She was immensely proud of Erza and Fairy Tail, glad that the ordeal was finally over. She looked at Wendy with affection, glad that the girl had not given up. She would need her healing magic once she returned to her body, the stomach wound looking particularly nasty. She knew destiny had chosen for her to come back to the land of the living, and she had no qualms with this, definitely not ready to die. She walked to her body, feeling herself being pulled towards it until both her spirit and body were one once more.

"L-Look!" Wendy pointed as the blonde began to stir. She suddenly moaned in pain, clutching at the wound on her stomach. Carla looked on in disbelief. The girl shook her head to clear her thoughts and began to heal the stomach wound to the best of her ability, only leaving a circular scar where the spear had pierced through the body. Lucy felt the pain subside.

"Thank you so much, Wendy. You're amazing." Lucy uttered, pulling the girl into a big hug, Wendy smiled happily as she returned it.

"It might ache for a while, Lucy-san, I'm too tired to heal it all." Wendy said apologetically.

"You did a great job." Lucy dismissed, feeling only minor discomfort where the scar was.

"Everyone thinks you're dead," Carla told, "Erza fell to pieces when she saw you get hit, I saw it in a premonition. They should be on their way back right now."

Lucy quickly shot up from the bed, ignoring the twinge in her stomach, thanking the sky dragon slayer once more before running from the room. Bursting out of the main doors of the Fairy Tail building she could see a crowd of limping people hobbling closer. Erza led the exhausted pack, Natsu leaning heavily on her. Their eyes met for the first time and Lucy felt her heart jolt.

"L-Lucy? Alive?" Erza whispered, truly believing this was some sort of hallucination.

"Lucy!" Natsu shouted, the addition of Wendy appearing behind the blonde and waving joyfully shattering Erza's doubt.

She let go of Natsu (despite his heated protests as he fell to the floor), sprinting through her aches and pains to Lucy, who ran to meet her. They collided halfway as they held each other tightly, relief and emotion showing through their tears. Not caring who saw them, Lucy did what she vowed to do and grabbed Erza's face, pressing their lips together, the feeling indescribable.

Between kisses, she promised to never leave the Requip mage ever again.


	13. Collide

**Hope you've enjoyed the story, we're at the end now! Yeah this is rated M because there's a small lemon, so I changed the rating of the story accordingly. I've marked where it begins and ends with (xxxxx) just in case any of you don't want to read lemon. Thanks for reading! **

**Disclaimer: I don't own FT.**

* * *

"Lucy..." Erza whispered, holding the young woman close to her, "How are you here? I saw you-"

"I don't know," Lucy responded, "but it doesn't matter now. We're all alive."

"Lucy!" Natsu shouted happily, ruining the moment as he and Gray embraced the two. Others soon joined the group hug, some crying in relief, finally able to get back to their normal lives. Makarov stood to the side, tears streaming down his face, sniffling.

"What's up, Gramps? Getting sentimental?" Laxus teased, watching the emotional moment with his hands in his pockets. To the side of them, Gildarts held his daughter tightly, glad she had emerged from the conflict relatively unharmed. Cana seemed less than amused with the hug, but deep down appreciated the comfort.

"Lu-chan!" Levy called, eyes wet as she too joined the embrace.

"Don't think I've forgotten," Lucy said with a wink, holding Erza's hand. Levy giggled, remembering her scheming and unsure whether she would be thanked or killed later. Erza looked at the two with a raised eyebrow, thinking she was missing out on something.

"Nee-chan!" Elfman cried, picking up Mirajane into a crushing man-hug. Mira laughed as she returned the hug, glad to see her brother was safe. She knew they had made Lisanna proud that day.

"Look at Magnolia," Gray said, finally stepping back and looking at the damage, "it's a wreck."

"There's still a lot of work to do," Juvia added.

"We'll start tomorrow," Makarov stated, "right now, I'd like to say congratulations to Erza! Let's have a drink in her honour!"

"I think Wendy is the real hero today," Erza countered, smiling at the dragon slayer as she blushed. "Even if I won, many of you wouldn't be here if she hadn't have been."

This earned a cheer from everyone as they filed into the guild building, picking up Wendy and thanking Erza as they passed. Erza watched them with a smile, "I think I'd rather go to sleep than party."

"You deserve it, Erza-san!" Mirajane replied, giving her a kiss on the cheek before joining the others. Makarov looked at her and shook his head proudly, wiping a tear from his left eye.

"Go rest," he said simply, "you've done more than you realise. Take care of her, Lucy."

Erza nodded in understanding, taking Lucy's hand in her own as they set off to Fairy Hills. Happy watched them, mischievous grin painted on his face.

"Don't even think about making a rude comment," Carla warned, hitting him on the back of the head.

"Aye sir!" Happy responded, saluting the female Exceed. Natsu laughed as he leant on Gray for support, heading for the guild building and hoping the fire was stoked. He smiled as he thought of the expression on Erza's face when she saw Lucy alive, knowing that sort of feeling was irreplaceable. Watching the two girls disappear, he was glad that both of them had finally found happiness in each other.

* * *

"What was it like?" Lucy asked, referring to Erza's battle. "I only saw some of it, but it looked intense."

"It was. I tried to think of happy things, but he would twist it into something evil. I almost gave up until I heard you." Erza answered as they laid in bed, limbs entangled, simply resting and trying to process what had happened. "Then I could feel the armour respond. I felt like I could take on the world and win."

"Because Judoc was with you," the blonde finished. Erza shook her head.

"That was one thing that helped, but I also felt you with me. I made you a promise, Lucy. I couldn't go back on that," she clarified, "when I thought you were dead, I..."

Lucy put her hand on Erza's cheek, wiping away a lone tear with her thumb. "I'm not dead, I'm here."

"Really, it was you that saved the world," the Requip mage said, "you saved my life by taking the spear. If you hadn't done that, I'd be dead and the world would be lost."

"So I'm the real hero," Lucy teased, poking Erza's forehead playfully, "but you get all the recognition!"

Erza suddenly rolled on top of her, kissing her deeply. Lucy, surprised at the sudden action, returned the kiss with fervor, threading her fingers in Erza's long hair.

"I can't explain to you how I feel, Lucy," Erza started, gazing happily into Lucy's eyes, "so I want to show you. Can I do that?"

"Of course," Lucy whispered in reply, pulling the girl into another passionate kiss.

**xxxxx**

When Erza's tongue gently touched her own, Lucy felt as though every inch of her skin was on fire in the best way possible, arousal spiking through her body. Erza's thigh slipped between the blonde's, making her gasp loudly and break the kiss.

"E-Erza," Lucy stuttered, face hot as Erza's wet mouth met hers again.

"Yes?" Erza asked, moving her kisses to Lucy's jaw line, trailing down the stretch of bone to her neck. Lucy's hand tightened in Erza's hair, ache between her legs becoming increasingly unbearable.

"I've never done this before," she spoke, nervous despite knowing this was exactly what she wanted. Erza stopped her activities to look at her once more, giving her a sweet, reassuring kiss on the lips.

"Me neither," she said, hands unzipping Lucy's shirt, "let's learn together."

Removing the shirt, she kissed down Lucy's chest to her stomach, stopping when she saw the scar. She grazed her fingers over it, asking Lucy if it hurt. When the blonde said no, she gave the scar itself a soft kiss before taking off the girl's skirt and underwear in one swift motion. This was when Lucy started to feel slightly self-conscious.

"Don't worry, you're beautiful," Erza soothed, glowing as her clothes disappeared. Lucy felt herself throb in anticipation as she looked at Erza's smooth, toned body.

"So are you," Lucy stated, pulling the Requip mage to face her again. Erza settled her hips between Lucy's thighs, the pressure causing Lucy to elicit a small moan. Their lips met in another hot kiss, tongues sliding together as Erza began to move her hips, the blonde's legs wrapping around her body. Lucy groaned quietly upon every movement, nails digging into the bare skin of her lover's back.

"Lucy," the red-haired girl mumbled, burying her face in Lucy's neck as they rocked together. When Lucy felt she was close, she flipped them over so she could straddle Erza's hips, grinding hard as her moans became louder, ignoring the discomfort in her stomach muscles. Erza bit her lip to stop her own sounds of pleasure escaping, hands touching Lucy's body as it moved atop of her. Lucy grabbed her hands, holding them tightly as, after what seemed like forever, she hit her climax, the look on her face triggering Erza to fall into hers.

**xxxxx**

After they had made love, the two cuddled under Erza's sheets. Lucy had her head resting on the young woman's chest, finally feeling completely happy.

"Erza, I'm in love with you," she blurted, deciding to bite the bullet and hope for the same response. Erza smiled, kissing the blonde softly as she looked at her for an answer.

"I'm in love with you too, Lucy," said the Requip mage, running her fingers through Lucy's hair, the touch causing her to yawn as she sighed happily. After a few minutes, she was sound asleep. After everything they had been through, Erza believed they deserved this happiness, immensely relieved that the whole saga was over and she could build the rest of her life with Lucy.

It did not take long for her to drift into a fulfilling sleep, this time with unspoken permission to hold the girl tight in her arms.

* * *

"What surprise are they planning? It's not my birthday, so it can't be that..." Lucy wondered one week after the battle. Her and Erza's relationship had been received well by Fairy Tail, the members simply wanting the two to be happy. Gajeel and Levy were the two everyone now had their eyes on, the chemistry between them undeniable.

Erza had left Lucy a note on her side of the bed one morning, slipping out before the Celestial Spirit Mage awoke and had a chance to talk to her. The note simply read: _'Come to the guild hall when you're ready. There's a surprise waiting.'_

When Lucy arrived at the doors, she could not hear anything unusual going on, only the usual brawl sounds and raucous laughter. Pushing them open, no-one seemed out-of-character or suspicious, just giving her the usual greeting as they always did upon her arrival.

"Hey Lucy!" Natsu said, grinning. Bandages still covered some parts of his body.

"Hey Natsu," she replied kindly, glad to see he was recovering. She asked him, "do you know about any surprise for me? I got a note from Erza this morning-"

He hushed her, merely pointing to the stage. Everyone in the hall became quiet, looking to where Natsu was currently gesturing. Master Makarov stood in the spotlight, microphone in his hand.

"We all know why we are here today," he began, "apart from Lucy that is."

She blushed as she became the centre of attention, knowing grins on every face she looked at. Erza emerged from the crowd, taking her hand and leading her on to the stage.

"Erza, wait, what-"

"We are here to welcome Fairy Tail's newest member," Makarov interrupted, making Lucy's heart race with excitement as she comprehended what he said. "Lucy Heartfilia!"

"W-what?" she uttered, eyes tearing as everyone cheered loudly. Erza kissed her hand.

"Welcome to Fairy Tail," she said, "that is, if you want to join."

As Lucy looked at the beaming faces of the friends she had begun to see as family, she could not think of a place she would rather be. She could only nod in affirmation as Makarov asked her where she wanted her guild mark. She held up her right hand, the one Erza had kissed just seconds earlier, watching with childlike enthusiasm as Fairy Tail's mark was branded onto the skin.

"For saving the world from Moros and helping us along the way, and for never giving up, here's to Lucy!" Makarov stated, holding a mug of beer above his head. A roar of agreement erupted from the crowd.

"I'm glad you're here, Lu-chan!" Levy said, pulling the blonde into a hug. "Now you can help me with my love life like I did yours!"

Lucy laughed, returning the hug. "Of course, Levy-chan! I'm sure I can come up with a _great _plan!"

Erza meanwhile stood looking confused over the whole exchange, _still _thinking she was missing something. Natsu and Gray were the next to personally welcome Lucy, making her promise that she would go on jobs with them. _  
_

As she settled back into Erza's warm embrace, Lucy looked at the guild she could now call herself a part of. She had come a long way since travelling alone, her Spirits her only companions through the lonely nights, but her journey had been worth the pain. She had met some amazing people, seen amazing magic and helped save the world as she knew it alongside them. Moros was no more, and Lucy could not help but feel anticipation for her next adventure with her friends.

She knew one day she would have to visit her father, as she promised, but for today, Lucy Heartfilia was more than content with living the rest of her days as a Fairy Tail wizard, building up her dreams alongside Erza's.

* * *

**End.**

**And there we have it, the conclusion of this story. I hope you've all enjoyed the ride, because I have! Thank you all for reading and reviewing and sticking with it!**


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